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PRACTICAL 
EVANGELISM 



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WILLIAM H. BURGWIN 




THE METHODIST BOOK CONCERN 

New York Cincinnati 



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Copyright, 1914, by 
WILLIAM H. BURGTMN 



DEC 22 1314 

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TO 

THE CHURCHES 

He has been privileged to serve 

and 

Which have done so much for him 

This Book is Dedicated 

BY THE AUTHOR 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER PAGE 

Foreword 7 

I. Twice-Born Men 13 

II. The Personal Touch 41 

III. The Textbook 55 

IV. The Keynote 79 

V. The Force.. 101 

VI. The Field 120 

VII. The Campaign 142 

APPENDIX 

Some Plans for Practical Evangelism 

I. For the Local Church 170 

II. For a Community Movement 181 



FOREWORD 

The author, in presenting this mod- 
est treatise on Practical Evangelism, 
does not pose as an expert in reUgious 
psychology, though he has some knowl- 
edge of the findings of the investi- 
gators in this field. He believes his 
o^\Ti point of view is accurately de- 
scribed by the word ^^practical/^ As 
an active pastor for nearly nineteen 
years, he offers a digest of his own 
ministerial experience as related to 
evangelism, feeling sure that such a 
statement, had it been put into his 
hands at the beginning of his min- 
istry, would have added greatly to his 
efficiency. He dares hope that this 
expression may serve as an index finger, 
pointing at least an occasional worker, 
whether minister or layman, even in 
the earlier years of his activity, to 
the highway of assured success. 

7 



INTRODUCTION 

To be successful, evangelism must 
be practical. I mean not only as to 
principle and methods, but more espe- 
cially as to results. Men have had fine 
ideals as to evangelism, where the 
attempt to fulfill them has not been 
realized. Men have arranged elabo- 
rate systems of evangelistic work, 
where the product has been inconsid- 
erable. By ^Tractical EvangeUsm^' I 
understand something which not only 
can be applied to given situations, but 
can be depended upon for permanent 
product. 

In these days when so much is being 
heard about efficiency in the work of 
the world, we should not hesitate to 
apply to our religious activity the test 
bred of the inquiry, ^'Is it worth 
while?'^ To be worth while, the plan 
must work; the campaign must bear 

9 



10 INTRODUCTION 

fruit; the fruit must abide. Men 
should come out of our evangehstic 
labor, not merely as men who have 
had rare spiritual experience, but as 
men ready to have their experiences 
translated into work for the world. 

I believe the author is giving us 
something of value. I am sure that 
he proceeds upon the right line when 
he lays down as a fundamental the 
sense of the spiritual underlying the 
practical. That the Spirit of God 
strives with men, and that men may 
heed the Spirit and find God — this is 
not only good theology but sound 
psychology, upon which men ought al- 
ways to build in any plans for Chris- 
tian evangelism. 

Who will not be in accord with the 
author in laying the emphasis, as he 
does, upon the use of Spirit-filled men, 
strong in the Word and in prayer? 
It is a needed note in the work of the 
Kingdom to-day, that the church 
should come to realize its birthright 



INTRODUCTION 11 

and its possessions so that men and 
women everywhere, wrought upon by 
the Spirit of God, trusting much in the 
use of the Bible and prayer, may be 
employed as the force whereby God 
shall find new conquests in the world. 
Theodore S. Henderson. 



1 



CHAPTER I 

TWICE-BORN MEN 

With great personal benefit I have 
read and reread Mr. Harold Begbie's 
books Twice Born Men and Souls in 
Action, published in England as, re- 
spectively, Broken Earthenware and In 
the Hands of the Potter. Each book 
has a significant subtitle, the first, 
^^A Clinic in Regeneration,^^ the second, 
^The Crucible of the New Life.'^ 
All of these titles are suggestive and 
truly descriptive of the character of 
the books. Both books, I take it, 
have their primary inspiration, as Mr. 
Begbie testifies of Twice Born Men, 
in Professor William James's book 
The Varieties of Religious Experience. 
^The purpose of this book, which I 
venture to describe as a footnote in 
narrative to Professor James's famous 
work,'' says the author in the Preface, 
'^is to bring home to men's minds 

13 



14 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

this fact concerning conversion, that, 
whatever it may be, conversion is the 
only means by which a radically bad 
person can be changed into a radically 
good person.'^ The difference between 
the two books is seen not merely in 
the locaHties where the subjects are 
found. Twice Bom Men tells of ^ ^sud- 
den, violent, and passionate conver- 
sion,^' while Souls in Action cites 
cases ^^in which a gradual and quite 
tranquil change of heart leads to the 
new birth/' Another difference: ^^In 
Twice Born Men the testators were 
all men, and of the humblest classes 
in the community, some of them the 
very lees and dregs of society,'' whereas 
in Souls in Action most of the stories 
concern women, and in all cases the 
strata of society are above the depths. 
Having before him Professor James's 
treatise on Religious Experience, with 
its carefully stated definition of con- 
version — ^to be converted,' ^to be re- 
generated,' ^to receive grace,' ^to expe- 



TWICE-BORN MEN 15 

rience religion/ ^to gain assurance' are 
so many phrases which denote the 
process, gradual or sudden, by which 
a self hitherto divided, and consciously 
wrong, inferior, and unhappy, becomes 
unified and consciously right, superior, 
and happy, in consequence of its 
superior hold upon religious realities'' 
— Mr. Begbie goes forth into the 
depths of a London slum, where the 
serpent and the tiger, the fang and 
the claw nature of humanity are in 
the ascendant, and there, where a 
Salvation Army barracks lays siege 
and wins miraculous triumphs, he finds 
^The Puncher," ^^Old Born Drunk," 
'^Rags and Bones," and the rest. Or, 
in the West London Mission, a mon- 
ument to the vision, devotion, and 
enthusiasm of Hugh Price Hughes, 
where the Wesleyan Methodists qualify 
grandly as exponents of the church 
militant, sustaining ^^an army ever at 
war against all that is vile, base, 
and degrading, an army ever exhil- 



16 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

arated by the zest of conflict and 
forcible with the hardihood of active 
service, an army whose battle song 
should be no morbid whine after indi- 
vidual mercy," the author leads us 
to a community such as the inquirer 
must seek ''if he would really under- 
stand the place and power of Chris- 
tianity in the destinies of the human 
race," and stirs our blood as we read 
of "The Flowing Tide," ''Betrayed," 
"The Girl and Her Lover," among 
others, ending with three tales, told 
under the caption, "Sister Agatha's 
Way," delineating the personality, 
methods, and triumphs of one con- 
secrated soldier of Jesus Christ. All 
of which means that Mr. Begbie di- 
vested himself of his prejudices pro and 
con, and in the spirit of modern science, 
by a true laboratory method, proved 
his accepted definition of conversion. 

It is not my purpose to review the 
Uves of the twice-born men and women 
whom Mr. Begbie has made familiar 



TWICE-BORN MEN IT 

to every Christian community in the 
Enghsh-speaking world. That work 
has been done, with unwonted enthu- 
siasm, not only by religious journals, 
but even by the secular press. For 
this there is occasion for gratitude. 
Yet there is a certain note in com- 
ments which may be heard, as well 
as in reviews which have been printed, 
against which I would respectfully 
protest. My objection is not against 
Mr. Begbie's thorough service to Chris- 
tianity and the world, but against a 
possible inference that there is a new 
discovery in that which he relates, or 
that a lost art has been brought to 
light. Mr. Begbie makes no such 
claim. Such moral miracles as these 
books exploit are as old as Chris- 
tianity and as recent as to-day. They 
can be verified, I believe, wherever 
in Christendom an earnest Christian 
minister has been devoted to his holy 
calling for a short term of years. 
Often, in a local community, they may 



18 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

not become generally known because 
of the embarrassment which such rev- 
elation would bring to individuals and 
families. Even the secret of such 
marvels of grace may be known. 
There are two great principles of 
divine procedure which pertain. First, 
God is now, as he ever has been, reach- 
ing out for all men by his Holy Spirit. 
It is the peculiar ojffice of the Spirit 
of God to ^ ^convict the world in 
respect of sin, and of righteousness, 
and of judgment'^ (John 16. 8). It 
is true too that the warning stands, 
'^Quench not the Spirit'' (1 Thess. 

5. 19), ^^And grieve not the Holy 
Spirit of God, in whom ye were sealed 
unto the day of redemption'' (Eph. 
4. 30), and with good reason, for even 
in the days of Noah, before the 
Deluge, ^ ^Jehovah said. My Spirit shall 
not strive with man forever" (Gen. 

6. 3). From which we conclude that 
the Holy Spirit at some time or times, 
perhaps on many different occasions. 



TWICE-BORN MEN 19 

knocks at the door of every individual 
life. But he is not always appealing, 
and the recipient of this divine favor 
who resists knows not when the Spirit 
may depart, grieved away by human 
obstinacy, back of which always is 
sin. The second principle is this: 
The man who follows the guidance of 
the Holy Spirit will find God. The 
converts on the day of Pentecost were 
newborn men, ^^and they continued 
steadfastly in the apostles' teaching 
and fellowship' ' (Acts 2. 42), not 
merely because they heard the apostles' 
preaching, but because that preaching 
was in demonstration of the Spirit and 
with power, and because they w^ere 
not disobedient; they followed the Holy 
Spirit's guidance. It was ever thus. 
Saint Augustine, Wycliffe, Huss, Lu- 
ther, Knox, the Wesleys, every other 
great Christian soul and every Chris- 
tian convert — all tell the same story. 
Mr. Begbie demonstrates these truths 
in his books. This may not have been 



20 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

his purpose. He started out to put 
Professor James's definition of conver- 
sion to a rigid scientific test, and 
demonstration of these principles is a 
result. He does not claim to discover 
anything which is new; he does not 
reveal a lost art. He simply proves 
the conquering power of the Christian 
religion under most disadvantageous 
conditions. Surely, if any Christian 
worker, toiling in this age of material- 
ism, has lost heart and questions the 
potency of his message, these tales 
should bring back courage and fill 
with abounding energy, for, given the 
devotion, what has been done in the 
most difficult places can be accom- 
plished in more favorable surroundings. 
As a matter of fact, just such results 
are being achieved daity. As a humble 
laborer in Christ's vineyard I am so 
presumptuous as to assert that in my 
own ministry these great principles 
have been demonstrated many times 
to my complete satisfaction. I have 



TWICE-BORN MEN 21 

not the slightest doubt that thousands 
of Christian ministers can recite just 
such triumphs of grace. In detailing 
briefly certain cases in my own work, 
my purpose is to embolden Christian 
workers everywhere, convinced that 
God can work and is working, through 
his servants, to conquer the world for 
righteousness. 

In a city in Connecticut where I 
was pastor, friends informed me of 
the arrival of a family of Methodists 
on their street. I called and gained 
permission to secure the transfer of 
membership of the wife and mother, 
but only after I had promised to visit 
the husband and interview him per- 
sonally as to his religious life. I 
kept my pledge, calling a number of 
times, enjoying interesting conversa- 
tions, finally winning this man for 
Jesus Christ. His story is an unusual 
one. His mother died when he was 
young. There were other children. 
After a time the father introduced a 



22 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

stepmother into the home. The new 
wife had little liking for the children. 
Soon, their father supporting them, 
they were committed to a so-called 
home, where there was no specific 
religious instruction, though there was 
moral training. This husband and 
father testified that he had never 
been taught to pray, that he did not 
know how, and that he never had 
prayed. Yet it was evident he was a 
man of distinct religious aptitudes. 
He respected his wife's religion. He 
wanted his children reared as Chris- 
tians. He was gentle in speech and 
action. He was willing to attend 
church services, and did so. Naturally 
enough, he did not feel that he was 
qualified for church membership, but 
he was willing to be guided. He had 
been worshiping with us for some time. 
I felt the day had come to bring 
matters to a decision. I called at 
his home on a Saturday evening pre- 
ceding the first Sunday of the month. 



TWICE-BORN MEN 2S 

I did my best to engage him in re- 
ligious conversation, but without avaiL 
At length, deciding that, after all, 
the occasion was not propitious, I 
prepared to leave. We — the husband, 
the wife, and the pastor — ^were stand- 
ing in the parlor and the greetings 
of the departing guest had been made, 
when the husband, speaking my name 
and looking me straight in the eye, 
said: ^^Wait a moment. I did some- 
thing last night I never did before. 
I have not told my wife as yet. You 
will be interested. I had been at 

lodge over at W . We had been 

doing some impressive work, and as I 
was walking home in the beautiful, 
clear night, with stars overhead and 
mystery everywhere, I was deeply 
moved with the thought of God. As 
soon as I got into the house I went 
down on my knees in prayer. '^ Need- 
less to say, I was completely surprised. 
Evidently, the religious had been the 
uppermost idea in the man's mind, 



24 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

but I had not been able to discover 
it, though that was my particular 
purpose that evening. I did not leave 
the home as I had intended. We 
prayed together. There was extended 
Christian communion. The outcome 
was that the man was received on 
probation the next morning, became a 
full member of the church in due 
time, and is now an official member. 
Only last April we reviewed his expe- 
rience in conversation together with a 
group of friends. To it he added his 
testimony that the religious life is 
profitable not only for spiritual but 
for secular interests as well; that his 
firm has much greater confidence in 
him than formerly, and that, as an 
expert mechanic, he now holds a posi- 
tion of great responsibihty. Is not my 
contention established by this man's 
experience? God, by his Holy Spirit, 
was reaching after his creature. The 
man was responsive to the divine 
guidance, and he found God. 



TWICE-BORN MEN 25 

A number of personal histories are 
connected vividly with work done in 
a densely populated district of the 
greater New York. Soon after that 
pastorate began I was called on an 
emergency case to a home in a ten- 
ement where a mother with a newborn 
babe was in great distress. Her hus- 
band, crazed by liquor, had come 
home, dragged his wife from the bed, 
kicked her, and otherwise treated her 
cruelly. Medical ministries were pro- 
vided. The woman recovered and her 
husband became sober. He was sin- 
cerely penitent for what he had done. 
The pastor was summoned to baptize 
the baby, which he did. The children 
were in the Sunday school. Calls 
were made occasionally at the home — 
a comfortable one, as a rule. The 
husband was a skillful artisan. His 
great enemy was drink, but he was 
not an habitual drunkard. Nearly five 
years passed. God's Spirit had fol- 
lowed him all those years. Special 



26 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

meetings of deep interest were being 
conducted in the church. This artisan 
attended the meetings, though he rarely- 
had been seen at the services before. 
The Holy Spirit gripped the man. 
He was converted. Subsequent pas- 
tors have testified as to his fidehty. 
A httle more than a year ago, when 
on a visit to the old charge, I met 
him and he reaffirmed his allegiance to 
Jesus Christ. His wife has been no 
encouragement to him, but he stands 
fast in his faith, a marvel of the 
divine grace. 

It may have been a year after I 
had been called to minister to the 
mother in distress that I noticed a 
strange man of middle age in company 
with a young man at an evening 
service. The young man was well 
known to me. His story too is in- 
viting, but that is another tale. The 
two men were present week after 
week at the Sunday evening service, 
and sat alwaj^s in about the same 



TWICE-BORN MEN 27 

place. The stranger was interested. 
The young man came to me one day 
and asked me to speak to his friend 
if I could get a chance without too 
much effort. He was fearful any ob- 
trusive action might be repelling. It 
was not necessary for me to seek the 
stranger; he came to me. He had 
attended some twelve or more regular 
services. He asked me if I could 
give him the time for religious coun- 
sel. Of course I could. I did. His 
story came out in fragments during 
a number of conversations. He was 
born in a house on the Newmarket 
racetrack in England. He had been 
trained as a horse jockey. He had 
ridden on all the great tracks of Europe 
until he became too heavy for that 
profession. He drifted to the West 
Indies. He married. Finally, some 
twenty-five years before, he came to 
the United States. He knew a horse 
from hoof to ear-tip, and, while he 
had little school education, was known 



28 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

as ' 'doctor'' and had charge of the 
horses of a large corporation. He told 
me that he had not been in a church 
for many years, excepting when he 
took the children to a neighboring 
Episcopal church for baptism, until 
about three months before; that dur- 
ing twenty-five years he had never 
been free from liquor, though he had 
been able usually to take care of 
himself and always had provided for 
his family; that having heard the 
gospel preached for five or six weeks, 
he had felt there was something wrong 
with him, and that he had quit drink- 
ing and had not tasted a drop in over 
six weeks. He came to the prayer 
meeting and related his experience. 
He became a faithful member of the 
church. I have lost track of him of 
late, but I am confident that he too 
illustrates the mighty power of God's 
grace to seek and to save lost souls. 

The form of a sturdy, red-faced 
EngHshman fills my mind's eye. He 



TWICE-BORN MEN 29 

was in his prime, the head of a family 
which had moved next to the church. 
The children came to the Sunday- 
school; the mother and one older child 
presented church letters. An attrac- 
tive family. Our deaconess became a 
welcome guest in the home. The 
father was not religious. He said he 
was able to take care of himself; he 
didn't need God to look after him. 
For more than forty years he had 
managed to go it alone; guessed he 
could manage his affairs to the end 
of the chapter. If the wife wanted 
to go to church, well and good; and 
it was all right enough for the chil- 
dren; wouldn't hurt 'em anj^way. Evi- 
dently a difficult case. At length we 
were in the midst of a revival cam- 
paign. The deaconess was drawn to 
the independent spirit at the head of 
the nearby household. He promised 
her that he would attend the meet- 
ings, and he kept his word. A Sunday 
night service came. He was there — 



30 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

not for the first time. He was touched. 
He sat in the end of a seat next to 
one of the aisles. As the invitation 
was given he placed his foot in the 
aisle; there he remained, partly out of 
his seat, halting between two opinions, 
his face flushed and troubled. The 
altar service proceeded. I thought of 
going to him, but something held me 
back. The meeting was dismissed. 
He was at the Tuesday evening service. 
His face was a study. He was in- 
tense. The invitation was given; his 
foot was in the aisle again; but he 
did not come. The preacher pleaded 
for decision. ^Teeling isn't enough! 
Judgment as to right isn't enough! A 
convicting conscience will not save! 
The will — the will — must assert itself!'' 
This was the plea. The man's in- 
tensity increased. 0, a battle royal 
was being fought in a man's breast 
in yonder pew, all the forces of habit 
and all the fiends of hell arrayed 
against one soul-troubled mortal. Sev- 



TWICE-BORN MEN 31 

eral times between prayers and hymns 
the same invitation in different ways 
was given. All the time a yielding 
was evident. Finally, in response to 
the appeal, ^Who will come? Who 
will?^^ several times repeated, this seK- 
sufficient man, the flush still on his 
determined face, shouted, ^^I will!'' 
sprang to his feet and literally ran to 
the altar. Yes, he was converted, and 
there was glory in that ruddy face. 
He was a stationary engineer and had 
a responsible position. He told us 
that he had spent the best part of 
two days on top of one of the boilers 
wrestling with God in prayer; that he 
had scarcely closed his eyes for two 
nights; that the struggle was simply 
awful, and that he found relief only 
when he said ^^I will,'' and surrendered 
to Jesus Christ. His eldest son, a 
young man, and a younger son were 
converted during the same meetings. 
The man has had many vicissitudes in 
the intervening years, but when I saw 



32 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

him about fourteen months ago the 
glow was still in his face. This was 
not a human accomplishment. God 
honored the efforts of his servants, and 
this engineer became a new creature 
in Christ Jesus. 

The church had been prepared for 
special revival effort. A famous evan- 
gelist was to begin work on a certain 
Sunday. Three meetings had been 
held during the preceding week. Fri- 
day night came, with a congregation 
of a hundred, possibly. There were 
several strangers present. One woman 
in particular was profoundly stirred, 
was even moved to tears. She re- 
sponded to the invitation, and with 
other strangers, who were her friends, 
and practically the whole congrega- 
tion, came forward to the altar. The 
pastor conversed with the seekers and 
was able to help all excepting the 
woman, who was weeping as though 
her heart was broken — as it was. 
Prayer was offered, earnest, searching 



TWICE-BORN MEN 33 

prayer. But prayer and exhortation 
were apparently futile. Finally the 
pastor was impressed to request all 
to join aloud in the Lord^s Prayer. 
He believes that the Spirit of God 
moved him to urge the people to 
pronounce no petition of that model 
prayer unless it could be done sin- 
cerely. Then, very deliberately, he 
led the praying people, every petition 
standing out by itself. The heart- 
broken woman recited petition after 
petition clearly and firmly until ^Tor- 
give us our trespasses as we forgive 
them that trespass against us'' was 
reached. She hesitated; she struggled. 
The conflict was desperate. There 
was a great sob; it came from the 
depths. The fountains of the deep 
were broken up. Slowly, but earnestly, 
she pronounced the difficult words. In 
so doing she conquered a vengeful, 
hateful temper, which, not without 
reason, had taken possession of her. 
I learned her story soon thereafter. 



84 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

She and her husband had been officers 
and successful workers in the Salva- 
tion Army — captains, as I remember it. 
They were happy in their work. Chil- 
dren were born to them. One little 
girl was a cripple. The husband sinned, 
became a race-track gambler, and left 
his family. For a time he supported 
them well. Then remittances ceased. 
Trying times came. The wife too had 
left the Army. She had friends there, 
but would rather suffer than betray 
her need and sorrow. It seemed so 
heartless that her husband should de- 
sert his crippled child. She could not 
forgive him, and she would not! Where 
was God, that he could allow such 
wickedness? She found God. She for- 
gave her husband, in spite of his 
infidelity, and was herself forgiven of 
God. When last I heard from her 
she had a responsible position in con- 
nection with a Volunteers of America 
Home in a neighboring State. In 
spite of her sorrow she became a 



I 



TWICE-BORN MEN 36 

happy and efficient servant of the 
Lord Jesus Christ. 

Following an after-meeting on a 
Sunday evening, a German woman ap- 
proached the pastor somewhat timidly 
and in imperfect English said she 
wished to join the Methodist Church, 
and that her husband would join with 
her. Inquiry developed the fact that 
she had been reared in Germany as 
a Roman Catholic, had come to Amer- 
ica when fifteen years of age, and that 
a New Testament in German had been 
given her at Castle Garden. She had 
never read that book before. It was 
fascinating. When her mother dis- 
covered her possession she took it 
from her, warning her of serious con- 
sequences from the reading thereof. 
She honored her mother's command, 
though sad of heart. After her mar- 
riage to a man nominally a Lutheran 
she purchased a Bible in German. It 
was, indeed, a lamp to her feet and 
a light to her path. Yet she was 



36 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

loyal to the Roman Church. She 
attended its services. Her children 
were baptized by its priests. But as 
the boys approached youthful years, 
she turned away from Rome. She told 
of conditions there which she felt 
threatened the moral integrity of her 
sons. ^^I could be a good Christian/^ 
she said, ^^in the Roman Catholic 
Church, but I think of my boys.'' 
She, with her husband, joined the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. She felt 
God had sent them there in answer 
to prayer, and she said so repeatedly 
in public testimony. Through his own 
word the Holy Spirit had reached the 
innermost life of this devoted mother, 
and she was obediently responsive to 
the heavenly Father's call. The devo- 
tion of the husband was, evidently, 
as real as that of the wife. Subse- 
quently two sons and two daughters 
were received into church fellowship, 
and a new baby was baptized by the 
Protestant clergyman. 



TWICE-BORN MEN 37 

A single additional instance, one 
which has been a great personal inspi- 
ration. It would seem that it should 
convince men anew of the activity 
and the potency of God's Spirit. The 
place is a large Long Island village, a 
suburb of New York city. An intel- 
ligent man, slightly lame, stepped into 
the church and took the seat nearest 
the door. It was a Sunday evening. 
He was gone before the minister could 
reach him. He continued to attend 
the evening service; then came to the 
morning worship as well. One day he 
stopped long enough to invite the 
minister to call. He lived alone in a 
house near the church. His mother 
had died about a year before. That 
mother was a beautiful Christian, a 
member of that church. She had long 
been a patient sufferer with rheu- 
matism. This son, fifty-five years of 
age, was a persistent infidel. He be- 
lieved his mother had a comfort in 
her religion; still he insisted that her 



38 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

religion was a delusion. Before her 
death he had been her faithful nurse. 
After her departure he had remained 
in the home, his own health being 
impaired. He had come to church, 
he said, as a matter of pastime and to 
satisfy his curiosity. He had never 
been a deeply depraved man, but had 
used alcoholic stimulants more or less, 
and in a moderate way had been ^^one 
of the boys^^ in other days. To use 
his own phraseology, ^^You hit me in 
the neck the very first night. I went 
home angry, hunted up a Bible, and 
found to my surprise that what you 
said was there, and more Uke it.'^ 
He said that he was ^^hit'^ every time 
he came to the services. Religion be- 
gan to assume the form of reality. 
He felt his own need of God^s help. 
He read the Bible. He prayed. He 
gained relief, but he could hardly be- 
lieve it lasting. He put himself on 
probation, deciding that if God would 
help him to lead a Christian life for a 



TWICE-BORN MEN 39 

term of months, he would confess him 
and present himself as a candidate 
for church membership. He adhered 
strictly to his self-prescribed program, 
attending all the services possible, in- 
cluding prayer meeting and class meet- 
ing. It was his delight to converse 
with the brethren on religious subjects. 
His religious life grew brighter and 
brighter, though the rheumatism fas- 
tened itself with constantly increasing 
tenacity upon him, and he could leave 
the house only with great effort. A 
brother-in-law, a sincere Christian, who 
knew his life from young manhood, 
called at the parsonage to express 
appreciation of the great change which 
had been wrought in the life of an 
infidel. ^^It's a wonderful change, '' he 
said. And it was — a complete trans- 
formation. The suffering rheumatic, 
rejoicing in peace of soul, lives in that 
brother-in-law's home in the State of 
Connecticut. Here is a sentence from 
a recent letter: ^T can assure you that 



40 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

my faith in the Master is just as 
strong as ever, and I pray daily that 
it may become stronger and firmer.'^ 
He is rarely able to attend the sanc- 
tuary now, but evidently is growing 
in grace. 

God lives! God works in the hearts 
of men! God saves! He is not con- 
fined by seasons or localities. Some 
are reached in revival times, others 
under ordinary circumstances of wor- 
ship within the church or elsewhere. 
The Holy Spirit is abroad pleading 
with men. When the plea is heeded 
transgression is forgiven, iniquity is 
covered; where evil was the good 
abounds. These are working principles. 
All Christians should recognize them 
and permit themselves to be channels 
for the Holy Spirit. We should be 
convinced that none are too bad; that, 
if given a chance, the grace of God 
has such potency that the most de- 
praved and debauched can be saved, 
^^saved to the uttermost. '' 



CHAPTER II 
THE PERSONAL TOUCH 

The principles which have been 
enunciated and illustrated in the pre- 
ceding chapter are fundamental. The 
Spirit of God does strive with men, 
and men may heed the Spirit and find 
God, doubtless without other agency. 

Nevertheless, it is evident as a prin- 
ciple of the divine procedure that the 
efficiency of the Holy Spirit as a 
regenerating agent is increased as saved 
sinners become workers together with 
God. This is the divine method as 
presented in the Bible. In Christ 
Jesus the divine and the human were 
united to bring salvation. Though 
Christ is no longer present in the 
flesh, the same union of powers is 
most largely successful in winning souls. 
Men with burning hearts because of 
the Holy Spirit's presence are to touch 
other hearts and thus effect a vital 

41 



42 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

union with Jesus Christ. This expe- 
rience is common to soul-winners every- 
where. Peter and his companions felt 
it at Pentecost. Spiritual history has 
been repeating it ever since. Clearly, 
then, this mighty truth has not been 
hidden. It is no secret to be possessed 
and used bj^ an elect few. It is an 
open sesame for every Christian into 
a field of untold achievement. '^Ye 
shaU receive power, when the Holy 
Spirit is come upon you: and ye shall 
be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, 
and in all Judaea and Samaria, and to 
the uttermost part of the earth' ^ (Acts 
1. 8). The resurrected Christ was 
not mistaken. His last words, spoken 
just before ^^he was taken up,'' deserve 
our most reverent attention. They 
should flood the Christian with a sense 
of obhgation. Thej" should impel him 
to holy achievement. 

As a matter of fact, it would appear 
that the majority of Christians have 
no such sense of personal respon- 



THE PERSONAL TOUCH 43 

sibility. Certainly, there is no wide- 
spread cry, ^' ^Woe is me' if I win 
not souls/' On the other hand, there 
is an apparent incredulity as to com- 
petency, resulting in an utter indiffer- 
ence with many if not most Christians. 
This incredulity and indifference, if 
questioned, are excused on the ground 
that such work is that to which the 
minister is ordained and for which min- 
isters are equipped both by school train- 
ing and practical experience. Soul- 
winning is an essential part of his 
vocation and the minister ought to 
achieve such results. Granted! That, 
however, does not relieve any other 
Christian to whom opportunities may 
come, especially since there are thou- 
sands — yea, millions — ^whom the min- 
isters can never reach because of 
obvious and natural limitations, how- 
ever willing their disposition. That 
opportunities do come to or may be 
found by most Christians is a sufficient 
indication of duty. 



44 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

Yet truly, for this work above all 
others, there must be equipment for 
laymen as well as ministers. That 
equipment is attainable. Such attain- 
ment may be followed by achievement. 
Certainly, achievement is unlikely, if 
not impossible, without the prescribed 
equipment, followed by earnest effort. 
The trained athlete knows that often 
the most surprising feat is performed, 
by supreme effort, when achievement 
seems impossible. The capable athlete 
succeeds because he tries — dares ven- 
ture even though he fail. Herein is 
the secret of success for the Christian, 
commissioned to win souls — as every 
Christian is: Fitness added to Effort 
Produces Success. 

Surely, it is the unescapable duty 
of every Christian to be efficient as a 
soul-winner to the extent of his talents. 
Such efficiency requires the worker to 
be a Christian indeed. This means 
personal union with Jesus Christ — 
prayer union, contact through his 



THE PERSONAL TOUCH 45 

Word, and union with him by the in- 
dweUing of his Spirit — the vital rela- 
tion of the vine to the branches. 
This union insures agreement with the 
Saviour in motive and activity. There 
will be personal contact with men, 
coupled with willingness to follow the 
divine leadings and courage to seize 
opportunities in simple faith and hum- 
ble dependence on God. Having this 
equipment, practically any Christian 
who has the faculty of interesting others 
in anything— lessons to be learned, 
goods to be bought, club or lodge to 
be joined, candidate to be voted for, 
literature, music, art, social chat, sport 
— ^has essential qualities for individual 
work for Christ. There may or may 
not be impelling inherited traditions, a 
natural personal disposition, long and 
intimate association with men, thor- 
ough education, and wide reading. 
Any or all of these may be helpful; 
all are desirable; but none of them 
are essential as an equipment for the 



46 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

winner of souls. The sine qua non of 
the evangelist, whether minister or lay- 
man, as to fitness, is union with Christ 
and contact with men, linked to a 
determination to acquaint the sinner 
personally with the Saviour. Whatever 
else he has or has not, this must be 
the possession of the soul-winner. 

Yet fitness without endeavor, like 
knowledge and faith without love, is 
nothing. All the power of Jesus would 
not have saved the Samaritan woman 
without Christ^s effort. What pains 
he took! How discreetly he directed 
that conversation! How tactful he 
was ! How winsome ! How prodigal in 
revealing truth to a congregation of 
one! And such a one! He wrought 
manfully, divinely, for that soul, and 
he won. Assuredly, then, it is the 
unmistakable obligation of every Chris- 
tian to strive to win others for Christ, 
according to his ability. Opportunities, 
as a rule, need not be sought. They 
press upon us. Family ties and bus- 



THE PERSONAL TOUCH 47 

iness, educational, social, political, fra- 
ternal, and every other relationship in 
life, bring frequent opportunities for 
Christian effort. Negligence means 
peril and disaster, not only to the 
sinner, but to the Christian as well. 
He must answer for his sins of omis- 
sion. To-day many persons — ^multi- 
tudes — are unconverted and unsaved 
because the ministry of soul-winning 
is made the endeavor of the few rather 
than the active employment of all 
Christians. The British Weekly tells 
a story of General William Booth, of 
the Salvation Army. He had re- 
sponded to a request for an interview 
with Queen Alexandra. The interview 
ended, the Princess Victoria requested 
him to write in her autograph album. 
For a moment he was at a loss as to 
what to write. A quick thought solved 
his problem. He took pen and wrote, 
^^Saved to save,^^ and signed his name. 
A short time thereafter a messenger 
came from Queen Alexandra, bearing 



48 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

her autograph album and requesting 
the General to inscribe therein the 
same sentiment he had written for the 
Princess Victoria. Of course he acceded 
to the request, and wrote for the 
good queen that which well may be 
the ideal and the purpose of every 
Christian of high and low degree, 
^'Saved to save/^ 

Of course every effort will not be 
successful in apparent result. The 
athlete has failures. The business in- 
vestment does not always pay div- 
idends. Students have been known to 
fail in examinations. It is admitted 
that there may be great disappoint- 
ments as well as certain successes. 
Yet every opportunity, whether of min- 
ister or layman, in public or private, 
is to be recognized as a solemn call 
to effort promising glorious results. In- 
variably that call should be accepted. 
Whether success is apparent or not, 
it is real as God reckons and as eternity 
will show, when sincere effort has been 



THE PERSONAL TOUCH 49 

made. The great sadness is that so 
many Christians make no attempt to 
win men. Even the opportunities 
which confront them unsought are 
ignored. The evident results often are 
startling when honest efforts are made. 
Why should they not be remarkable? 
The Christian does not work alone. 
God is his confederate. It is a holy 
alliance, in which human limitations 
are swept away and the impossible is 
transformed into the possible. To 
illustrate : 

A young man passing a one-armed 
newsboy on the street handed him a 
card invitation to a Young Men's 
Christian Association meeting. It was 
the only card he had the grace and 
courage to offer that day. The news- 
boy attended that meeting and was 
converted — a soul was saved from 
death. How shght an effort for God 
may have a great result! Consider 
another case: A man of twenty-seven 
years pulled the parsonage doorbell 



50 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

one fall evening. He inquired for 
the pastor. His greeting was an apol- 
ogy. He was not sober. The pastor 
had visited the young man^s father 
some time before. As the son had 
passed through the hall and up the 
stairs he had caught fragments of the 
conversation. Subsequently, weary of 
his bondage, having tried to reform 
over and over again, as a last desper- 
ate venture, he sought the counsel of 
a man whose voice he had heard, 
whom he trusted because of his ^^high 
calling, ^^ but whom he had never seen. 
He signed the pledge. He was ad- 
vised urgently to take a more radical 
step, but he lacked the courage that 
night. After three weeks he was 
trapped into drinking. Again he sought 
the minister and confessed his fault, 
ashamed that he had broken faith. 
That night he took the more decided 
action on his knees — the first prayer 
in eight years. He kept ^^straighf' 
and happy for months. A peculiar 



THE PERSONAL TOUCH 51 

combination of circumstances to which 
he should have been superior led to 
his fall. Yet recent reports indicate 
that after about ten years he is living 
a sober and honorable life. This 
opportunity sought the minister, was 
forced upon him. He might have felt 
the case hopeless and dismissed his 
caller, whose condition was abject. He 
did what he could. The result — a 
miracle of grace. Of course God was 
in it. One more case: A Scotchman 
called on a minister to plan for the 
funeral services of his babe. The 
minister spoke to him, as anyone 
might, of his religious life. He had 
'^lost his evidences.'^ He was not 
^^good enough^ ^ to receive the holy 
communion. After the funeral the 
minister called at the home, as was 
his custom. He met the wife and 
mother bereaved. How tender she was ! 
Almost the first sentence about per- 
sonal faith in the heavenly Father to 
whom her child had gone brought 



52 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

tears. She rededicated herself to Christ 
then and there. She had been yearn- 
ing for Christian fellowship. That eve- 
ning in the revival service she made a 
public confession of Christ. Several 
months thereafter — it was Watch Night 
— ^her husband was present. The canny- 
Scot had been wary, had avoided the 
church. But he had not escaped the 
strivings of the Divine Spirit. He 
found his ^ ^evidences'' that New Year's 
morning. How faithful he became ! A 
daughter — a schoolgirl — was converted 
soon afterward. Other conversions, in- 
cluding friends and neighbors, were 
brought about through their efforts. 
Evidently, affliction and sorrow afford 
immediate opportunity for Christian 
sympathy and triumph. Wise is he 
who thus wins a soul. He hides a 
multitude of sins. 

Truly, every soul-winner should de- 
spise discouragement and scorn diffi- 
culty. No case is too obstinate. No 
man has a right to decide that any 



THE PERSONAL TOUCH 53 

are hopeless. Make the effort! Re- 
peat it, if necessary. ^^If at first you 
don^t succeed, try, try again. '^ The 
result may be a Peter, a Bunyan, a 
Moody. Such Christian conquerors are 
the demand of the hour. But first 
we need the Andrews to lead them 
to Christ. 

The great revival will arrive when 
the work of the ministry, faithfully 
performed in pulpit and pastoral labors, 
is reenforced by the hearty service of 
hosts of real Christians in individual 
effort for souls. George Macdonald re- 
lates the story of a boy, gazing at 
a glorious sunset, who thought he 
would like to be a painter, ^ ^Because 
then,'^ he said, ^^I could help God 
to paint the sky^' (Annals of a Quiet 
Neighborhood, page 15). Recalling 
such evidences as the age affords of 
the divine power in transforming hu- 
man lives from vicious ugliness to 
holy beauty, shall not we too have 
aspirations? that we might be 



54 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



soul-winners, and thus help God to 
banish the desert and bring paradise 
to earth! 

Away with incredulity! Expel in- 
difference as to the need and duty 
of individual work for souls! Thus 
w^e shall remove a serious barrier to 
the salvation of men. Speed the day, 
Lord Jesus! 



CHAPTER III 

THE TEXTBOOK 

We have learned heretofore that 
men are unable to touch their fellows 
with that power which brings decision 
for Christ unless they themselves are 
Spirit-filled. Given this God-possessed 
life, then the consecrated effort is 
usually rewarded. There are two great 
instrumentalities without which life is 
unlikely to be Spirit-filled. One instru- 
mentality is the Holy Bible. The 
Bible must be employed by the winner 
of souls. No one can use the Bible 
intelligently and effectively without 
specific knowledge of its contents. 
Through the Bible-searching Christian 
God brings his adequate, personal mes- 
sage to mankind. There is no doubt 
as to the adequacy of the Bible mes- 
sage. As Dr. Charles E. Jefferson said 
so strikingly in his Yale Lectures, 
'^Many men have many minds and 

55 



66 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

many needs and many tastes, and the 
Bible is a myriad-sided book for a 
myriad-sided humanity'^ (The Building 
of the Church, p. 258). The Christian, 
then, being associated with men, whom 
he ought to influence and win for 
God, must search the Scriptures, that 
he may gain such a mastery of this 
myriad-sided book as will enable him 
to apply its balm to the wounds of a 
mjTiad-sided humanity. 

I. The Evangel and the Evan- 
gelist ' 

Our Scriptures include the gospel. 
The gospel is the evangel, and the 
evangel is the good news. It is a 
universal message. There is no super- 
man in respect to the Scriptures. Real 
human superiority is most likely to be 
a gospel product. There is no degrada- 
tion beyond the reach of gospel help. 
Where decadence persists and sin 
riots, there the evangel is despised. 
The good news is to be found in 



THE TEXTBOOK 67 

the Old Testament as well as in the 
New. The major note in both is 
'^redemption/^ Incidentally, redemp- 
tion is related to every human in- 
terest. Primarily and paramountly it 
is concerned with the moral and spir- 
itual welfare of mankind, and its unit 
is the individual. Divine relationships, 
as well as human, are described in 
the Book with a lucidity, a heart- 
searching sympathy, and an authority 
nowhere else apparent. Here is essen- 
tial truth. ^^Search the Scriptures'^ 
and you will find fundamental prin- 
ciples which are eternal. As the prob- 
lems of mathematics cannot be solved 
without the fundamental operations, 
so the problems of life require for 
their solution a working knowledge of 
Bible fundamentals. He who has such 
practical knowledge and uses it is an 
evangelist. 

But evangelists are few. They should 
be many. Literally, every Christian 
should be an evangelist, a herald of 



58 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

the evangel, one who tells the good 
news of salvation. But the story is 
not being heralded as it ought to be. 
Why? Is it because we know not 
the evangel? Or, knowing it, do we 
treat it lightly, indifferently, or even 
contemptuously, as did so many of 
the contemporaries of Jesus? Be sure 
there can be no evangelist without 
the evangel. Here, doubtless, is the 
revelation of failure. The Bible is 
accessible. The Book is open. But 
the Scriptures are not being searched. 
The treasures of Holy Writ have not 
been found, appropriated as a personal 
possession, and hid in our hearts, that 
they may become a leaven leavening 
the whole lump of humanity. 

II. The Evangel Equips the Evan- 
gelist 

Notwithstanding our un-Christian 
delinquency, we cannot but observe 
the mighty and salutary influence of 
the Bible upon the world. Our na- 



THE TEXTBOOK 69 

tional leaders of to-day are men of 
strength. Whence has come their 
power? Is it not a reassuring fact 
that the most positive and influential 
of these men are pronounced and 
practical Christians? They have dem- 
onstrated their familiarity with the 
Bible and their loyalty to the great 
Book. As long ago as 1901, the Hon. 
Theodore Roosevelt, then Vice-Pres- 
ident of the United States, delivered 
an address at Oyster Bay, at the 
Eighty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the 
Long Island Bible Society, of which 
he is one of the vice-presidents. That 
address treated of the Bible as related 
to character. He argued that ^^the 
Bible is not only essential to Chris- 
tianity, but essential to good citizen- 
ship'^; that ^^every thinking man, when 
he thinks, realizes what a very large 
number of people tend to forget that 
the teachings of the Bible are so 
interwoven and entwined with our 
whole civic and social life that it 



60 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

would be literally — I do not mean 
figuratively, I mean literally — impossi- 
ble for us to figure to ourselves what 
that life would be if these teachings 
were removed/^ The address closed 
thus: ^^We plead for a closer and wider 
and deeper study of the Bible, so 
that our people may be in fact as well 
as in theory ^doers of the word, and 
not hearers only^ ^^ (President Roosevelt 
On The Bible. American Bible Society 
Leaflet). More recently, on the occa- 
sion of the Tercentenary Celebration 
of the King James^ Version of the 
Bible, in Orchestra Hall, Chicago, Illi- 
nois, May 4, 1911, the Hon. William 
J. Bryan delivered a remarkable ad- 
dress on ^The Book of Supreme 
Influence. ^^ In that address Mr. Bryan 
said, ^ ^Wherever the moral standard 
is being lifted up — ^wherever life is 
becoming larger in the vision that 
directs it and richer in its fruitage, 
the improvement is traceable to the 
Bible and to the influence of the 



THE TEXTBOOK 61 

God and Christ of whom the Bible 
tells'' (Hon. William J. Bryan On The 
Bible. American Bible Society Leaf- 
let). At about the same time, cele- 
brating the same event, at Denver, 
Colorado, he who is now President of 
the United States, the Hon. Woodrow 
Wilson, declared the Bible to be the 
charter of human progress. Mr. Wilson 
said that the Bible ^ ^reveals every 
man to himself as a distinct moral 
agent, responsible not to men, . . . but 
responsible through his own conscience 
to his Lord and Maker. Whenever a 
man sees this vision he stands up a 
free man.'' Again: ^^A man has found 
himself when he has found his rela- 
tion to the rest of the universe, and 
here is the book in which those rela- 
tions are set forth." Further: ^^And 
the Bible is without age or date or 
time. It is a picture of the human 
heart displayed for all ages and for 
all sorts and conditions of men." 
^ ^Nothing makes America great except 



62 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

her thoughts, except her ideals, except 
her acceptance of those standards of 
judgment which are written largely 
upon the pages of revelation/^ Here 
are the closing words of the address: 
^^I have a very simple thing to ask of 
you. I ask of every man and woman 
in this audience that from this night 
on they will realize that part of the 
destiny of America hes in their daily 
perusal of this great book of revela- 
tions — that if they would see America 
free and pure, they will make their 
owTi spirits free and pure by this 
baptism of the Holy Scripture'^ (Gov- 
ernor Woodrow Wilson On The Bible. 
American Bible Society Leaflet). Do 
not such testimony and admonition 
convince us that the Bible provides 
highly desirable equipment for men? 
Is it not clear that the Bible must be 
taken seriously? More seriously than 
the pocketbook, or the bankbook, or 
any other book whatsoever? 

Certain it is that the serious searcher 



THE TEXTBOOK 63 

within the Book finds there a personal 
commission. That great commission is 
for every Christian. Our Saviour says, 
''Go ye into all the world'' (Mark 
16. 15). His farewell assurance, '^Ye 
shall be my witnesses'' (Acts 1. 8, 
R. V.) includes every -disciple. What- 
ever our vocation or social standing 
or religious relationships, we are to 
make the gospel known; we are to 
be witnesses of Jesus Christ at home 
and abroad. This is a task to 'which 
every Christian is ordained by the 
will of God and the personal com- 
mand of Christ. And the great com- 
mission has been its own vindication. 
Whenever and wherever men have felt 
and acted upon it as a personal obli- 
gation, life has been revitalized in 
individuals, communities, and states. 
Gospel truth in human life and in so- 
ciety is a powerful constructive agency. 
Its absence is an assurance of dete- 
rioration. George Macdonald is right 
when he quotes a devout German who 



64 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



says that ^ 'Where God rules not, de- 
mons will'^ (Annals, p. 322). 

Obviously enough, however, no one 
can preach the gospel without know- 
ing it. No soul can bear witness 
unless he has seen and felt for him- 
seK. Where shall we go that we may 
see, and who shall teach us that we 
may know? We must ' 'search the 
Scriptures.'^ This is a complete an- 
swer. The Bible is our Mount of 
Vision. Its supreme personality is our 
Teacher. In his Word there is eternal 
life for every soul (John 5. 24). The 
Book introduces us to the Teacher and 
clears the atmosphere so that we may 
see the vision — ^which many of his 
countrymen did not see, as his own 
statement indicates (John 5. 40). But 
he who heeds the Teacher and learns 
the lesson sees the vision and per- 
forms the task. His achievements 
prove the power of the gospel. 

The secret of that power is not far 
to seek. The Bible teachings go to 



THE TEXTBOOK 65 

the very heart of things. The Bible 
breathes forth sympathy as a violet 
spreads fragrance. It extends strong 
arms of comfort as gracious as a 
mother's love. It puts a foundation 
under the feet: ^^On Christ the Solid 
Rock I stand/^ It does impart power 
and give life — eternal life. But it does 
more. It condemns! It robs sin of 
its bewitching beauty. It pictures the 
foul thing in all its awful, black colors 
and hideous forms. In sin's train 
stalks sorrow and tragedy — not joy and 
delights. Beyond that is the bitter, 
choking sob, the pall, the grave — then 
hell, deep, dark, abiding. In the 
Bible, sin is absolutely awful. Thus 
negatively, as well as positively, the 
Bible is the most constant and pos- 
itive preacher of righteousness. It 
never flatters; nor does it compromise. 
^'God hath said, Ye shall not eat of 
it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye 
die'' (Gen. 3. 3). No compromise 
there! To David the king, Nathan — 



66 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

God^s man — ^with indicting index fin- 
ger, declared, ^Thou art the man'' 
(2 Sam. 12. 7). Belshazzar was proud. 
Belshazzar was a mighty monarch. 
Nevertheless, the finger of the Al- 
mighty, when a thousand lords were 
Belshazzar's guests, inscribed on the 
wall of the banquet hall, ^Thou art 
weighed in the balances, and art found 
wanting'^ (Dan. 5. 27). The young 
man of high moral character was 
frankly told by Jesus, ^^One thing 
thou lackest^' (Mark 10. 21). That 
was [a concrete illustration of the 
eternal truth, ^^No man can serve 
two masters. ... Ye cannot serve 
God and mammon'' (Matt. 6. 24). 
The rich gormand, having died, is in 
torments, while Lazarus, the faithful, 
though a beggar and a noisome in- 
valid, finds a refuge in Abraham's 
bosom. And the way of salvation 
is not many; there is no alterna- 
tive route, ^^for there is none other 
name under heaven given among men. 



i 



THE TEXTBOOK 67 

whereby we must be saved^' (Acts 
4. 12). Then, almost on the last 
page of the great Book, we read, 
^^And there shall in no wise enter 
into it anything that defileth, neither 
whatsoever worketh abomination, or 
maketh a lie; but they which are 
written in the Lamb's book of life'^ 
(Rev. 21. 27). No flattery! No com- 
promise! Yet the Bible is as gentle 
as a lovely child and as tender as a 
wooing lover. How beautiful is the 
book of Ruth! How winsome are 
the Saviour's words! — ^^Come unto me, 
all ye that labor and are heavy laden, 
and I will give you rest. Take my 
yoke upon you, and learn of me; for 
I am meek and lowly in heart: and 
ye shall find rest unto your souls. 
For my yoke is easy, and my burden 
is light'' (Matt. 11. 28-31). 

Rightly do we infer as we thus 
read that God puts a high value on 
a human soul. The soul is infinitely 
valuable. We are ever confronted by 



68 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

the challenging interrogative of Jesus, 
^Tor what shall it profit a man, if 
he shall gain the whole world, and 
lose his own soul? Or what shall a 
man give in exchange for his soul?^' 
(Mark 8. 36, 37.) The total of all 
earthly treasure is too little to offer 
in exchange for the poorest, meanest 
human soul. It took the eternal life 
and the infinite love of God's Son 
to ransom accursed humanity. Heaven 
was compelled to make the unique 
and superlative investment that the 
penalty of sin might be paid. So 
great is the value of a soul, God him- 
seK being the assessor! 

It is also apparent to the Scripture- 
searcher that the Bible proclaims the 
purpose and the power of Christ to 
save souls. Repeated invitations and 
many assurances make it certain that 
he is willing and able to save men. 
''Behold the Lamb of God, which 
taketh away the sin of the world' ^ 
(John 1. 29). ^^I came that they may 



I 



THE TEXTBOOK 69 

have life, and may have it abun- 
dantly'^ (John 10. 10). ^The Son of 
man came not to be ministered unto, 
but to minister, and to give his life 
a ransom for many'' (Matt. 20. 28). 
^^I am the way, and the truth, and 
the life: no one cometh unto the 
Father, but by me" (John 14. 6). 
^Tor if, while we were enemies, we 
were reconciled to God through the 
death of his Son, much more, be- 
ing reconciled, shall we be saved by 
his life" (Rom. 5. 10). These, and 
many other like expressions, proclaim 
the glorious truth. They are conclu- 
sive. He is willing! He is able! 

This, then, is the prospect from 
our Mount of Vision: The beauty 
of holiness, the awfulness of sin, the 
worth of a soul, and the purpose and 
power of God through Jesus Christ 
to save men. The Teacher confirms 
the vision and directs us to our task. 
The Christian must be a witness. 
The earnest searcher gains a sense of 



70 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

personal responsibility which entails in- 
dividual accountability. He is his 
brother^s keeper^ and he knows it. 
He must be alert^ with lamps trimmed 
and oil provided. He must invest 
his talent and gain other talents. His 
neighbor maj^ be near or far, and he 
must be neighborly. The far country 
never can be his satisfying home; he 
must arise and go to his Father. 
Sowing and reaping are definitely re- 
lated; men may think they deny it, 
but God is not mocked. The cross 
is dreaded, derided, it may be; but 
it is the highway to the croT^n. Trib- 
ulation is sure — heart-crushing sorrow, 
heavily weighted burdens, humiliating 
adversity. But there^s something else 
— an antidote! Smiles for tears! Sun- 
shine for storms! ^^Be of good cheer, '^ 
saj^s Jesus, ^^for Fm the Conqueror.^^ 
His victory is mine. He lives now! 
So do I ! So shall I — if he is allowed 
to live in me. I am a trustee of an in- 
valuable treasure — my soul, my life. 



THE TEXTBOOK 71 

A superabundance of possessions^ 
things, cannot redeem my soul, any 
soul. Beside a soul they are paltry 
tinsel. My treasure is forfeit! Sin, 
the cause! It is redeemed! Alleluia! 
Christ is the ransom! How do I 
know? The redeemed of whom the 
Book tells say so. Peter and James 
and John; the Magdalene and the 
Samaritan woman; Zacchseus and 
the blind man; the Ethiopian prime 
minister and Saul of Tarsus, who be- 
came the great ambassador of Jesus 
Christ, and a host of others — they all 
tell the story of a full salvation. 

I know the power of the Book's 
truth is not exhausted. Not one jot 
or tittle is to pass away. My mother 
tested the truth. It did not fail her. 
She lived in the light of that truth 
— a tried and triumphant soul. That 
truth grips me. I have seen it sway 
and conquer men. It never fails when 
applied to an earnest life. Its invita- 
tion ever rings out, ^^0 taste and see 



72 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

that the Lord is good. Blessed is 
the man that trusteth in him'' (Psa. 
34. 8). And the epitome of the task 
is in the Rule called Golden and the 
Law which is Royal (Matt. 22. 37-40). 
Test them! Out of a loving heart 
bear witness. Then comes the song 
beginning, ^T love to tell the story 
of unseen things above.'' The sincere 
soul must act. He becomes a walking 
and talking evangel. He is effective, 
other things being equal, in proportion 
as he is mastered by the wonderful 
teachings of the Book. The field in 
which he labors is not limited. His 
genius, his talent, and his opportunity 
are given the fullest scope. It may 
be in the home, or in the Sunday 
school, or in the pulpit, or in the 
mission field. The soul of John Wesley 
was so flooded by the gospel truth 
that he looked upon the world as his 
parish. And though his dust rests in 
the cemetery adjoining City Road 
Chapel, London, even to-day the spirit 



THE TEXTBOOK 73 

of the man has so inspired men that 
his is a world-wide parish in which 
^^he being dead yet speaketh/^ 

III. Having the Evangel, the 
Evangelist Wins Men 

Somewhere there is the story of one 
of the first converts to Christianity in 
Japan. It testifies of the power of 
the gospel, brought to the attention of 
a young Japanese by an American 
lady. This lady was associated with 
several missionaries who were engaged 
in translating the Scriptures. The lady 
offered to teach English to the young 
man and gave him the Gospel of John 
to translate. Soon thereafter he be- 
came greatly agitated and restless. At 
last he could contain himself no longer, 
and burst out with the question: ^^Who 
is this man about whom I am reading 
— the Jesus? You call him a man, 
but he must be a God.^' Thus the 
written Word proved itself ^^quick and 
powerful'^ (Heb. 4. 12), and was the 



74 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



means of saving a soul (The Illus- 
trator). Miss Belle M. Brain, writing 
in the Missionary Review of the World 
concerning WiUiam Duncan, apostle to 
the full-blooded Tsimshean Indians, of 
Annette Island, Alaska, relates a won- 
derful tale of human accomplishment 
with the Bible as guidebook. On 
Annette Island is a village where ^ ^no- 
body gets drunk, everybody goes to 
church, no one smokes save an occa- 
sional tourist, no work of any kind 
is ever done on the Sabbath, God^s 
name is never taken in vain, and 
there has never been any bloodshed'' 
— all of which refers to conditions under 
present auspices. It was not ever thus. 
The picture of conditions as William 
Duncan found them a half century 
back is black enough. ^^The cruelty 
and degradation of the Indians beggar 
description. Their natural fiendishness 
was augmented by the white man's 
rum, and they were a terror then 
along the coast, both to red man and 



THE TEXTBOOK 75 

white. Not long after his arrival Mr. 
Duncan witnessed a sight from one of 
the bastions of the fort that revealed 
the awful depths into which these 
people had fallen. A chief having 
murdered a slave woman in honor of 
his young daughter, two bands of 
hideously painted savages dragged the 
body to the water^s edge, tore it 
limb from limb and apparently de- 
voured the flesh. Maddened by rum 
and wrought by a pitch of hysterical 
frenzy, they continued their fiendish 
orgies day and night for some time.'^ 
In 1909, when asked to account for 
the transformation. Father Duncan re- 
plied: 'The only power there is in the 
world to change the heart of man is 
found in the Bible. The gospel has 
done its work. You can teach the 
Indian in a great many ways — teach 
him to be this and that and teach 
him to work, and then fail if you dis- 
card the gospeF' (See TarbelFs Teach- 
ers^ Guide, 1911, p. 212). When a 



76 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

young man I heard a story of Bible 
power told by a beloved pastor. His 
father was a minister of the gospel. 
There was a son of that home, a young 
man who seemed proof against the 
gospel appeal. He was ill, sick unto 
death, as I recall it. His friends were 
deeply concerned, but no counsel or 
advices seemed potent for help to the 
groping soul. A Bible was left on a 
stand by the bedside. One day when 
alone the young man opened the book; 
he read from the Psalms. His eye 
fell upon the words, ^This poor man 
cried, and the Lord heard him, and 
saved him out of all his troubles^' (Psa. 
34. 6). A sun of brightness arose in his 
soul. Help arrived. The Book was 
potent. The invalid rested in peace. 

In my young manhood a profound 
impression was made upon my reh- 
gious life by a great revival campaign 
in the church of which I was a mem- 
ber. The evangelist was faithful in 
his presentation of truth, but I do not 



THE TEXTBOOK 77 

remember the details of any one ser- 
mon. As though it were yesterday, 
however, do I recall how, as he pressed 
the invitation, with open Bible in hand, 
the printed page held up toward the 
congregation, he pointed to and read 
the words, ^^AU have sinned, and come 
short of the glory of God^^ (Rom. 
3. 23). Then he would turn quickly 
to John 1. 29, his finger following the 
words of the text, ^ ^Behold the Lamb 
of God, which taketh away the sin 
of the world. '^ Finally, words of Jesus 
in Matt. 11. 28, already quoted, were 
permitted to make their appeal, ^^Come 
unto me, all ye that labor and are 
heavy laden, and I will give you rest.^' 
That was the A B C of salvation. 
Hundreds responded to the invitations 
which were given. It is true! It is 
true ! God's word does not return unto 
him void. The Spirit-filled man and 
the Spirit-inspired Book are a conquer- 
ing combination. 

In these days we are coming to 



78 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

think more than ever of Christianity 
as a great democracy — a religion which 
not only transforms the individual, but 
which, beginning with individuals and 
including all individuals, works marvel- 
ous transformations of righteousness in 
€ommunities and states. Its only lim- 
itation is the whole human race. Its 
program is the reconstruction of hu- 
man society everywhere. But Chris- 
tianity, as an imperial democracy, will 
not arrive until the mighty and vital 
truths of God's Book have been ab- 
sorbed and have become an essential 
part of all human activities. That is 
more nearly true now than it ever has 
been. We can hasten the coming of 
God's great day by the personal mas- 
tery and enthronement of Bible truth, 
and by appealing persuasively to our 
fellows to do the same. He who knows 
the evangel understands that this is not 
optional, but that it is the high privi- 
lege and solemn duty of every Chris- 
tian to be a witness for Jesus Christ. 



CHAPTER IV 

THE KEYNOTE 

Hitherto we have observed the 
potency of the Holy Bible as an in- 
strumentality through which the Holy 
Spirit comes into human lives, equip- 
ping men to win their fellows for God. 
The Spirit-filled life is induced also by 
the practice of prayer. Prayer is an 
instrument essential for the use of 
Christians in bringing God's kingdom 
to men. This we assume, having in 
our thought the precise instruction of 
Jesus Christ. The disciples one day 
saw the private devotions of our Lord. 
Previously, doubtless, they had noticed 
the influence of prayer in his life. 
They were impressed with the value 
of prayer for him, and in possibility, 
for themselves. ^^When he ceased, one 
of his disciples said unto him. Lord, 
teach us to pray, as John also taught 
his disciples. And he said unto them, 

79 



80 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

When ye pray, saj^, Our Father which 
art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 
Thy kingdom come^^ (Luke 11. 1, 2). 
^Thy kingdom come.'^ All the peti- 
tions of this Pattern Prayer are funda- 
mental. At this point, then, our Great 
Teacher touches the Kejraote for Chris- 
tian conquest. 

I. The Kingdom axd Prayer 

There should be no confusion as to 
the kingdom. I understand this king- 
dom to be the kingdom of God, the 
kingdom of righteousness, the kingdom 
of love and goodness in men's hves, 
the kingdom which will be realized on 
earth when God's will is done here as 
it is in heaven. T\Tien this prayer is 
answered it will be because men have 
followed Jesus Christ, have trusted and 
obeyed him, with glowing tongue and 
burning deed have certified to their 
fidelity. In some degree this has been 
reahzed in every age of the Christian 
era. The very existence of the apos- 



THE KEYNOTE 81 

tolic church is to be accounted for by 
a profound belief in the kingdom of 
God. The power which brought Chris- 
tians together in groups and built them 
into church organizations at the be- 
ginning was what has been called an 
impassioned confidence in the reality 
and immanence of that divine order. 
And prayer was the heart and soul 
of their union. We cannot forget that 
Pentecostal blessing, empowering the 
disciples for soul-winning endeavor, fol- 
lowed a prayer service extending over 
ten days and was characterized by an 
intensity which we should try to appre- 
ciate and realize for ourselves. Think 
of the occasion! The Lord had left 
them. Previous to his departure he 
had told them of his intention; they 
were depressed thereby; he informed 
them of the expediency of the separa- 
tion, but assured them that they would 
not be deserted or neglected. They 
would have another Comforter who 
would be a teacher, helper, and guide. 



82 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



Afterward he declared, ^And, lo, I 
am with you alway, even unto the end 
of the world'' (Matt. 28. 20). ''And 
a cloud received him out of their 
sight'' (Acts 1. 9). His promises, 
assurances, and the great commission 
were seed which took root in their 
hearts to produce a great expectation. 
Would the promises be fulfilled, the 
assurances honored? It was a crisis. 
They met and remained together for 
prayer. Faith and fortune and des- 
tiny were grounded upon the issue in 
which prayer played so large a part. 
And faith and prayer were vindicated. 
Prayer was the key to the dynamic. 
After the waiting in prayer for a day, 
and a week — yes, for ten days — the 
answer came. It was a flood tide 
of blessing and power. The Holy Spirit 
filled them. Vision and eloquence, 
logic and action followed in his train. 
The accession to the kingdom that day 
in Jerusalem was three thousand souls. 
Soon thereafter we read that ^^many 



THE KEYNOTE 83 

of them which heard the word be- 
heved; and the number of the men 
was about five thousand'^ (Acts 4. 4). 
Such prevaihng prayer, then and 
now, is related very directly and def- 
initely to a state of mind. With this 
state of mind comes the sense of 
personal need, a realization of new 
found values, a spirit of submission 
and a determination to use the instru- 
ment prayer. Were we to seek that 
state of mind in geography and lit- 
erature and biography, we would travel 
in imagination to Palestine, open our 
Bibles, and study the life of Jesus in 
the Gospels, recalling the directing ad- 
monition of Saint Paul to the Philip- 
pians, ^^Let this mind be in you, 
which was also in Christ Jesus^^ (Phil. 
2. 5). Jesus was a man of prayer, of 
prevailing prayer. It was essential to 
his well-being and ours that he should 
develop and maintain his powers by 
communion with God. Prayer was 
nourishment to his soul, and power to 



84 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

his purpose; it opened the door to 
infinite resources. Men are lean of 
soul, poor of purpose, Hmited in re- 
source, and void of fruitage, because 
they rely upon mere worldly counsel 
and help for guidance. Jacob was at 
the point of absolute failure in spite 
of great keenness and shrewdness of 
earthly wisdom. He faced his crisis 
knowing that he had exhausted his 
resources. He must find help. He 
reaches after God. Jacob prays! Ja- 
cob becomes a prince of God — Israel! 
Aspiring souls will travel with Jacob 
and Jesus to the place of prayer. 
The same truth applies to the Chris- 
tian who would be distinguished as a 
soul-winner — a builder of the kingdom. 
Tennyson says: 



More things are wrought by prayer 
Than this world dreams of. 

For so the whole round earth is every way 
Bound by chains about the feet of God. 



THE KEYNOTE 85 

There is evidence that the church 
has lost the keynote of power at 
times, with the result that the king- 
dom has suffered. Christians have not 
been at harmony among themselves. 
In our own experience, what we call 
Christian work has occupied our powers 
so largely, or matters foreign to the 
kingdom have crowded in and monopo- 
lized our time and energies so fully, 
that we have had little time or thought 
for prayer. And Zion knew no peace 
within her walls and little of pros- 
perity within her palaces. The correc- 
tive is not far to seek. Our rallying 
cry is: ^^Back to the Christ — the 
praying Christ !^^ He teaches us to 
pray, ^^Our Father, . . . Thy kingdom 
come.'' 

II. Prayer — ^A Mighty Force 

Prayer is a force to be used in 
relation to all human interests. The 
medical faculty acknowledge the value 
of prayer in connection with the heal- 



86 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

ing art. Science, too, attests its worth. 
Sir Oliver Lodge in his book Science 
and Immortahty argues as a scientist 
at considerable length for the vahdity 
of prayer. ^^If we have any instinct 
for worship/^ he says, ^^for prayer, 
for communion with saints, or with 
Deity, let us trust that instinct, for 
there lies the realm of true religion'^ 
(p. 44). '^It may be that prayer is 
an instrument which can control or 
influence higher agencies, and by its 
neglect we may be losing the use of 
a mighty engine to help on our Uves 
and those of others'' (p. 46). Pre- 
cisely so, as has been demonstrated 
by practical Christianity. It is highly 
probable that prayer had the chief 
place in the earliest forms of Christian 
worship and service. Then, too, in the 
face of sternest opposition, there was 
conquest. There were mighty men in 
the kingdom in those early days — con- I 
querors. Of some of them we read, 
^^And when they had prayed, the 



THE KEYNOTE 8T 

place was shaken where they were 
assembled together; and they were all 
filled with the Holy Ghost, and they 
spake the word of God with boldness'* 
(Acts 4. 31). The statesmen of the 
kingdom ever have been wielders of 
this powerful weapon. We are re- 
minded that back of the Reformation 
of the sixteenth century was the cal- 
loused knees of Philip Melancthon and 
the ^To have prayed well is to have 
studied welF' of Martin Luther. Lu- 
ther has been esteemed a thunderer. 
There was power back of his thunder- 
ings. It is said of him that when 
the battle of the Reformation was 
hottest and he was, therefore, busiest, 
he felt that he could not afford to 
spend less than four hours a day in 
prayer. No wonder he was a thun- 
derer — spake the word of God with 
boldness. When his heart was fired 
with prayer, he seized on great words, 
fabricated them into flashing sentences, 
which he hurled like bombs into the 



88 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

midst of his opponents, to their con- 
sternation and ultimate defeat. With- 
out the prayer hfe the bolts of the 
thunderer would have been of no effect. 
Referring to the Journal of John 
Wesley, Augustine Birrell writes that 
it is the most amazing record of hu- 
man exertion ever penned or endured. 
He describes Wesley as the greatest 
force of the eighteenth century in 
England. ^^No single figure influenced 
so many minds, no single voice touched 
so many hearts. No other man did 
such a lifers work for England'^ (Mis- 
cellanies). The lifework of Wesley 
saved England socially and politically, 
as also in respect to religion. Truly, 
he was a statesman of the kingdom 
of God. We are not surprised to 
learn that he always wrote on the 
first page of his diaries, ^T resolve, 
Deo juvante — 1. To devote (to retire- 
ment and private prayer,) an hour 
morning and evening — no pretense or 
excuse whatsoever'^ (The Life of John 



THE KEYNOTE 89 

Wesley, by Telford, p. 263). Doubt- 
less he too spake the word of God 
with boldness, and with a far-reaching 
effect which has made him the world^s 
great evangelist, because he possessed 
and did not lose the keynote of power 
— prayer. George Whitefield, Wesley's 
co-laborer, who so moved the hearts 
of men in England and America by 
his mighty appeals, had an unvarying 
rule of one hour alone with God be- 
fore preaching. 

Francis Asbury, the greatest con- 
structive force in American Christian- 
ity, ^ ^habitually arose at from four to 
five o'clock in the morning, and gave 
from three to four hours to prayer 
and study, and also as constantly, be- 
fore retiring for the night, gave him- 
self at least one hour to like pursuits'' 
(Francis Asbury, by George P. Mains, 
p. 107). ^^He seemed well-nigh literally 
to fulfill the precept of Saint Paul 
to ^pray without ceasing.' He was a 
true brother of Baxter, who ^stained 



90 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

his study waRs with the Yery breath 
of prayer' " Ibid., p. 107). "Freeborn 
Garrett.-::: -:;id of him, *He prayed the 
best, and prayed the most, of any 
man I ever knew' '' (Ibid., p. 109). 
Lq spite of difficulties almost insuper- 
able hi the field, and of physical frailty 
which would have been prostrating to 
most men, this man exalted the office 
of a bishop by labors almost unthink- 
able, ever exercising this power of 
prayer. "Some measure of his achieve- 
ments may be indicated by comparing 
the numerical status of the denomina- 
tion at the beginning and at the close 
of his episcopal career. When at 
thirty-nine years of age he was or- 
dained bishop the denomination com- 
prised but eighty preachers and less 
than 15.000 members. When in his 
seventy-first year he dropped his man- 
tle he was the acknowledged and 
venerated leader of more than 211,000 
Methodists and more than 700 preach- 
ers'' tllDid.. p. 125 . Yes. this .Christian 



THE KEYNOTE 91 

statesman prayed; evidently, he too 
was filled with the Holy Ghost, and 
spake the word of God with con- 
vincing boldness. 

Some years ago, when Mr. George 
Muller visited America, he was asked 
how long he had ever prayed con- 
tinuously for any object. ^Taking a 
little book from his pocket, he said: 
^When I was converted I was a wild 
boy in college. My conversion broke 
friendship between my roommate and 
myself, for he ^Vould have nothing to 
do with such a fanatic,'^ he said. I 
wrote his name in this book and 
promised God that I would pray for 
him each day until he was converted, 
or until I died. I prayed five years 
with no apparent result. Ten years 
went by with no change. I continued 
on for fifteen years — twenty years, and 
still he was an unbeliever. I did not 
yet give him up, but prayed twenty- 
five years, each day mentioning his 
name at the throne of grace, and 



92 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

then came a letter, saying, ^^I have 
found the Saviour/^ Then/ said Mr. 
MuUer, ^I checked out this petition 
as answered. In this same book I 
have other names that I have prayed 
for five, ten, and fifteen years, and 
scores of names against which there is 
a cross, showing that the requests have 
been granted.^ 

^^Here, then, was a man who made 
a business of prayer, and who kept 
his accounts with the Lord in a bus- 
inesshke way. When he had a matter 
to present to God^s attention, he first 
found a promise on which to base 
his appeal, always making sure, if possi- 
ble, that it was according to God^s 
will. Then he recorded his petition in 
a book and watched and waited for 
the answer. Is it any w^onder that 
this man^s faith grew rapidly, and that 
he became the most notable and, possi- 
bly, the most successful pray-er of 
modern times? '^ (What Every Chris- 
tian Needs to Know, by Howard W. 



THE KEYNOTE 93 

Pope, pp. 194, 195.) MuUer founded 
and supported great orphanages in 
Bristol, England, never making a public 
appeal for funds, but always laying 
the needs of the cause before God in 
prayer. He never lacked. His work 
extended over more than half a cen- 
tury. He has been called a million- 
aire by faith. As we have seen, his 
practice of prayer extended to direct 
soul-winning activities as well. 

It is probable, however, that there 
will be even greater inspiration for 
the multitude in the fact that lowly 
folk have found power in prayer. Dr. 
W. J. Dawson, in his stirring little 
volume, The Forgotten Secret, reminds 
us that ^The greatest revival in our 
generation, in the course of which 
80,000 have publicly confessed Christ, 
has found its sole dynamic in prayer. 
There has been little preaching, neither 
elaborate music nor eloquent appeals, 
and no organization of effort, but there 
has been abundant praying. In one 



94 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

instance known to me, a simple farmer 
and his wife unlocked the door of a 
humble chapel on a lonely hillside, and 
themselves began to pray for their 
neighbors by name, until in one fort- 
night, drawn by an invisible compul- 
sion, more than fifty persons so prayed 
for came to this unadvertised meeting, 
and yielded themselves to Christ. And 
this story is typical of the whole 
Welsh revival, which may be justly 
described as a rediscovery of the dy- 
namic efficacy of prayer. So, then, 
the secret is not only open but thor- 
oughly attested. Nothing proved by 
science is more plainly verified than 
that prayer is the supreme dynamic 
of the church. Is not the deduction 
obvious, that when the church returns 
to the practice of prayer, as the 
supreme expression of its life, it will 
at once rediscover the secret of con- 
quest, which is often conspicuously 
absent in the best organized revival?'^ 
(The Forgotten Secret, pp. 51, 52.) 



THE KEYNOTE 95 

Dr. Chapman tells of a gentleman 
whom he knew for years. He was 
one of seven sons. All but one were 
Christians. That one had well-nigh 
broken his mother ^s heart. She ^Vas 
wearying for him, as the Scotch people 
say. One of her old neighbors came 

in and said, ^Mrs. M , why don't 

you give John up? You have six 
boys for Christ; rejoice in them and 
let him go.' ^My old mother/ said 
my friend, ^rose to her feet, and taking 
hold of the chair for support, said: 
^I will never give him up. I gave 
him to God before he was born. I 
carried him to the church as soon as 
I could walk and placed him upon 
the altar; he is God's child and he 
will have him if he turns the world 
over to get him.' ^And she lived long 
enough,' said my friend, ^to see her 
boy a Christian, a judge in one of the 
highest courts in America, and an 
officer in the church" (Present-Day 
EvangeHsm, by J. Wilbur Chapman, 



96 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

pp. 142, 143). Thank God that so many 
mothers know the power of prayer! 

Bishop Nuelsen, writing from Bul- 
garia during the recent war, says: 
^^Over yonder in Ruschuk a good 
Methodist woman prayed earnestly for 
her unconverted husband in the field 
and was joined in her petition by the 
whole congregation. Some weeks later 
she came to prayer meeting and with 
a happy smile and a heart filled with 
gratitude she read a letter from her 
husband, in which he wrote that in 
the trenches before Adrianople he had 
given his heart to Christ and knew 
Christ as his personal Saviour'^ (The 
Christian Advocate, May 22, 1913, p. 
718). Truly, humble folk have found 
triumph in prayer. 

Now, a single page out of the book 
of personal experience. I had been 
privileged to act as college pastor at 
Cazenovia Seminary, Cazenovia, New 
York, for a week. Christian counsel 
in public speech and in private con- 



THE KEYNOTE 9T 

versation was the rule. Among other 
results were more than a score of de- 
cisions for Christ and reconsecrations 
to his service. When the campaign 
was over, at the suggestion of Dr, 
Skinner, the president, I dictated let- 
ters to the parents or guardians of 
the young people who had come to 
decision. Here is one answer: 

G— B , Pa., Dec. 20, 1913. 

Dear Mr. Burgwin: 

We wish to thank you for your very kind 
letter, teUing us the glad news that our boy 

had made a decision for Christ. . . . W ■ 

had almost lost faith in his home church, 
and you cannot imagine how thankful we are 
that he has made a start in the right direc- 
tion. . . . Mr. S , an evangeHst, is hold- 
ing meetings here. Monday an invitation 
was given for those who desired special prayer 
for their dear ones to come forward. I hesi- 
tated, but something seemed to say, '^Go.^' 
I went and offered silent prayer for my boy, 
and to-day came your letter as an answer 
to prayer. . . . 

Yours with gratitude, 

Mr. and Mrs. E C . 



98 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

No wonder S. D. Gordon says: ^The 
greatest thing anyone can do for God 
and for man is to pray. It is not the 
only thing, but it is the chief thing'' 
(Quiet Talks on Prayer, by S. D. 
Gordon, p. 12). 

It is this great thing which gives 
the Christian and the Church 

III. The Assurance of Victory 

But there is no victory without the 
keynote. When machinery has been 
operated for a considerable period it 
is apt to develop what is called ^^lost 
motion/^ which means a loss of power. 
Something needs to be done to restore 
it to effectiveness. The skilled work- 
man comes; he turns a screw here, 
tightens a tension there, adjusts new 
parts it may be, and the old machine 
is as good as new. When the church 
has developed ^^lost motion^ ^ and lacks 
conquering momentum, it is because of 
lost power. Then its members should 
follow the example of Jesus in the 



■ 



THE KEYNOTE 99 

practice of prayer, and heed anew his 
teaching, ^^When ye pray, say, Our 
Father, . . . Thy kingdom come/' 

I do not understand that prayer for 
our non-Christian friends compels them 
to become Christians in the sense that 
against their own wills they become 
faithful to Jesus Christ. I feel, rather, 
that the fervent, earnest prayer of the 
righteous has a direct influence upon 
the inner life of those for whom we 
pray; that our spirits thus working to- 
gether with the divine Spirit do bring 
our friends face to face with the eter- 
nal verities, influencing them to give 
these truths the consideration which 
they deserve, with the result that they 
at length act as they know they 
ought. Thus the life of the spirit 
within them is quickened and they are 
born again, as all must be who enter 
God's kingdom. 

Most surely this prayer of the church 
is being answered. The vision of the 
revelator inspires us with new zeal. 



100 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

Here is his record: ^The seventh angel 
sounded; and there were great voices 
in heaven, sajang, The kingdoms of 
this world are become the kingdoms of 
our Lord, and of his Christ; and he 
shall reign forever and ever^^ (Rev. 11. 
15). The answer is sure, for so it is 
writ. 

Jesus shall reign where'er the sun 
Does his successive journeys run; 

His kingdom spread from shore to shore, 
Till moons shall wax and wane no more. 

(Isaac Watts.) 

Amen! and Amen! ^^Our Father, . . . 
Thy kingdom come!^^ 



CHAPTER V 

THE FORCE 

There is a statement in the eighth 
chapter of the book of Acts which 
gives us a view of the early church 
at work. It reads: ^Therefore they 
that were scattered abroad went every- 
where preaching the word'^ (Acts 8. 4). 
Persecution at Jerusalem scattered the 
followers of Jesus, excepting the apos- 
tles, throughout the regions of Judaea 
and Samaria. Unexpectedly a great 
door of opportunity was opened, into 
which these disciples entered, for they 
^ Vent everywhere preaching the word.^' 
Their preaching was not in the formal 
fashion with which we are most fa- 
miliar; it was the bringing of the glad 
tidings, the heralding of the evangel, 
in conversation with individuals, and 
by informal address to groups. Thus, 
what appeared at the first a dire mis- 
fortune was resolved into a mighty 

101 



102 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

blessing. It made Christianity a uni- 
versal religion, and saved it from be- 
coming a mere provincial faith. The 
persecuted Christians were transformed 
into a force to be reckoned with. 

Dr. C. H. Parkhurst recalls that it 
was once remarked by the late Wil- 
liam E. Dodge that a church is a 
preacher's force, not his field. Let us 
consider the church as ^The Force,'' 
to be used by God to bring his king- 
dom to mankind. 

I. The Force 

God was and is at work in this 
world reconciling men and women unto 
himself. He works through and ap- 
peals to individuals. His children are 
summoned to this task as workers 
together with him. The common prac- 
tice now is for Christians to work by 
proxy. Through their church they sup- 
port a professional ministry, and the 
proclamation of the evangel is deputed 
to the preacher, with the pulpit as 



THE FORCE 103 

his vantage ground. The preacher and 
the pulpit are not to be despised and 
dispensed with. God knows they are 
needed, for he has called the preacher 
and established the pulpit. But world 
Christianization is not possible by this 
method merely. There is a force 
which is adequate for the great task. 

Were we discussing a military cam- 
paign, we would not have the slight- 
est difficulty in interpreting the word 
^^force.'' It would refer to a body of 
soldiers, larger or smaller. And this 
body of soldiers would be composed, 
in general, of officers and ordinary 
privates. The officers would be respon- 
sible for the campaign in degree deter- 
mined by their rank. The private 
soldiers would move and fight under 
the command and leadership of their 
officers. Campaigns are not won with- 
out leaders, and battles are not fought 
without soldiers. In these days great 
emphasis is being put upon the im- 
portance of the common soldier. The 



104 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

church, I have said, is the force to 
be used of God in winning men to 
his kingdom. There is a close analogy 
between an army and the church. 

Like a mighty army 
Moves the church of God. 

II. How Constituted 

Providentially the church is well con- 
stituted to be used as a force without 
any great readjustment, excepting in 
the very important matter of activity. 
As an army has its private soldiers and 
its official staff, so a church has its 
membership and its officiary. This 
characteristic of church organization 
goes back to a very early date. The 
first approach to an official Board of 
which we have intimation in the New 
Testament is found in the sixth chap- 
ter of the book of Acts. It grew out 
of a special emergency. Some there 
were who felt that in a certain de- 
partment of the work there was neglect 
of a group of Christians. No evil 



THE FORCE 105 

intent is charged. The apostles, against 
whom the complaint was made, acted 
wisely in requesting that they be re- 
lieved of this detail work and that 
seven brethren be elected from the 
multitude of the disciples to have 
charge — ^^seven men of honest report, 
full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, 
whom we may appoint over this bus- 
iness'^ (Acts 6. 3). The ^^seven^' were 
duly elected and assumed their respon- 
sibilities as prescribed. It is so re- 
corded, and their names are given 
(Acts 6. 5). We know that two of 
these seven were active and successful 
evangelists, for so it is stated expressly, 
namely, Stephen (Acts 6. 8ff.) and 
Philip (Acts 8. 5; 21. 8). We observe 
too that subsequently evangelism was 
not an uncommon practice among all 
the Christians, for we have read that 
^They therefore that were scattered 
abroad went everywhere preaching the 
word,'' I doubt not all the seven 
were eminent in this work, but two 



106 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



at least of their number were pre- 
eminent. These officials of the early 
church, having the full confidence of 
the Christian community, set an exam- 
ple of evangelizing zeal which was not 
lost upon the members. The followers 
of Christ were convinced, evidently, 
that it was their privilege and business 
to enroll disciples for Jesus Christ. 
They acted accordingly, with remark- 
able results. If the apostles and their 
successors, in Jerusalem and elsewhere, 
had been the only gospel preachers, it 
is highly probable that Christianity 
would have perished in the first cen- 
tury. It survived because of con- 
secrated leadership and a unity of 
activity on the part of most Christians. 
The church as an army of conquest 
and occupation, as now constituted, 
has a great advantage over the early 
church. To-day the church is estab- 
lished. There is not one society only, 
but thousands of them throughout the 
world, with millions of members, under 



THE FORCE 107 

an effective ministry, and each society 
with an organization of officials. The 
average local church will have from 
twenty to thirty officials. These per- 
sons are selected because of certain 
expected qualifications. I open our 
Book of Discipline and read: ^^Let the 
stewards be persons of solid piety who 
are members of the church in the 
pastoral charge, who both know and 
love Methodist doctrine and Discipline, 
and are of good natural and acquired 
abilities to transact the temporal bus- 
iness of the church' ' (Discipline 1912, 
p. 213, Par. 306). Concerning trustees 
it is required that two thirds of the 
number shall be members of the 
Methodist Episcopal Church. In prac- 
tice, so far as my experience goes, all 
have been members. Doubtless, there 
are emergencies which make exceptions 
necessary. It is well understood in 
our Methodism that class leaders, Sun- 
day school superintendents, Epworth 
League presidents. Brotherhood pres- 



108 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

idents, and all persons in positions of 
responsibility, shall exemplify Christian 
character, and it is at least hoped 
that they have the ability to teach 
and inspire others. We have stand- 
ards for the selection of officials, it is 
evident, and they approximate the 
ideal dictated by the apostles — '^men 
of honest report, full of the Holy 
Ghost and wisdom/^ This is true; at 
least, as a rule, the members of the 
official board of a normal church are 
the peers of any group of equal num- 
ber in the community as to intel- 
ligence, integrity, industry, and ability. 
The interests of the community — com- 
mercial, professional, political, social, 
charitable, civic, as well as religious — 
are represented upon the official boards 
of most churches. No group of persons 
in the church are so widely or so 
favorably known. None have so great 
an influence. They are key men. 
These facts are potent. They offer 
an advantage, and are an asset which 



THE FORCE 109 

every church should be permitted to 
use. 

Official position presents a great 
opportunity for spiritual as well as 
temporal leadership. Opportunity, we 
are agreed, spells responsibilfby, and 
responsibility ever stands for duty. 
As the directors of the material in- 
terests of the church, there is no 
saner way than by wise evangelism 
in which they can conserve their own 
success as officers and at the same 
time promote the advantage of the 
kingdom of God. Finances are never 
freer than under the impulse of a 
genuine revival. Further, members are 
increased, so that the financial con- 
stituency of the church is enlarged. 
But all of this should be viewed as a 
by-product of the spiritual triumph — 
spoils of battle wilHngly surrendered. 
As the officers of an army, the officiary 
of the church should lead their various 
departments to Christian conquest. 
And the campaign plan should in- 



110 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



elude the service of every member. 
This is not the common view of 
official duty. A revision of thought 
and of action in this matter is the 
crying demand of the time throughout 
the whole church. The sooner it is 
realized the better. I have known in- 
stances in which such change of view 
has been secured with marked results. 
Under the ministry of the Rev. Lewis K. 
Moore remarkable revivals, stirring the 
whole community with apparently im- 
possible conversions, occurred at South- 
ampton and Jamaica, Long Island, 
New York. This effective pastor-evan- 
gelist writes: ^^At Southampton and 
Jamaica I had exceptional work be- 
cause of the cooperation of my official 
men — difficult to get but finally se- 
cured. I insisted that officials of the 
church were the official church, and 
that organic official cooperation only 
could secure success in evangelistic ef- 
fort. In Southampton I pledged every 
official to attendance and support of 



THE FORCE 111 

the services during the series, taking 
the stand that the oJOBicials are the 
leaders, and the people are doomed 
to follow their leaders. In Jamaica 
again I was successful in securing the 
cooperation of my board as such, and 
we had a similar result. My expe- 
rience is, if you can get the sym- 
pathetic cooperation of your board, 
you have a revival that nothing can 
hinder. Without it little can be accom- 
plished. The most superhuman task 
of the day is to get our officials. My 
experience is, get them and the rest 
is easy.'^ 

Of course leadership is valueless un- 
less some are led. Church officials 
imply a church membership — a force 
to be employed. Soldiers, when they 
enlist, are pledged to fight for their 
country; if needs be, to suffer wounds; 
even to seal their loyalty with their 
lives. He who enlists as a soldier 
of Jesus Christ assumes responsibility 
also. He makes vows. Every church 



112 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

member has declared deliberately faith 
in Christ as his Saviour. He has 
solemnly covenanted to hold sacred 
the ordinances of God, and to en- 
deavor, as much as in him lies, to 
promote the welfare of his brethren 
and the advancement of the Redeem- 
er's kingdom. More than this, he 
has in the baptismal covenant spe- 
cifically renounced the world, the flesh, 
and the devil. He has promised too, 
before God and his people, to obe- 
diently keep God's holy will and com- 
mandments, and to walk in the same 
all the days of his life, God being 
his helper. Here are pledges to serv- 
ice, indeed — Christian service. To 
honor them may mean suffering. In 
other days it has meant martyrdom. 
That there are souls among us in 
larger numbers than we surmise who 
would even die for their faith I doubt 
not. But God's holy will and com- 
mandments are not being kept, and 
the advancement of the Redeemer's 



THE FORCE 113 

kingdom is not being promoted as 
they should be, under present methods. 

And so theyVe voted the Devil out, 

And of course the DeviFs gone; 
But simple people would like to know, 
Who carries his business on? 

(See Thinking Black, p. 228, 
by Dan Crawford.) 

III. Its Methods 

It is the supreme business of the 
church, through its individual mem- 
bers, to make disciples and to build 
them up in our most holy faith. This 
is the intent of the great commission 
(Matt. 28. 19, 20). It should be, then, 
the immediate purpose and the in- 
sistent determination of every church 
member, official and ordinary, to real- 
ize for himself practically this expecta- 
tion. John Wesley, in his early man- 
hood, ^^met a ^serious man^ who said 
to him: ^Sir, you wish to serve God 
and go to heaven. Remember, you 
cannot serve him alone. You must 



114 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

therefore find companions or make 
them. The Bible knows nothing of 
solitary religion' '^ (Birrell, Miscel- 
lanies). That message impressed John 
Wesley profoundly. He never forgot 
it, and he never ceased to find com- 
panions and to make them. More, he 
insisted that the companions he found 
and made should act on a like prin- 
ciple. And they did, hosts of them. 
His followers to-day should do no less, 
for ^^The Bible knows nothing of sol- 
itary religion. '^ Here is the truth 
which contains a suggestion as to the 
effective method to be used by God's 
force, the church, for the conquest of 
the world. 

Dean Birney, of Boston University 
School of Theology, moved to its 
depths the National Convention of 
Methodist Men, at Indianapolis, Indi- 
ana, by his wide-heralded address, 
'The New Day in EvangeUsm.^' Dr. 
Birney speaks of Peter's preaching on 
the day of Pentecost. He says that 



1 

J 



THE FORCE 115 

^^the final reality in this universe is 
not any truth that Peter announced 
or that can be announced in any 
public appeal. That final reality is 
personality, and the only evangelism 
that will ever bring this world to God 
is the evangelism that personalizes it- 
self as evangelism has never done in 
the past. . . . The coming evangelism 
will not simply depend upon a few 
preachers and a few missionaries, but 
upon a multitude of persons; it will 
use the foolishness of preaching not 
less, but it will use the high wisdom 
of redeemed personality immeasurably 
more. The sermon that won the three 
thousand to Christ on the day of 
Pentecost has dominated our ideals and 
methods all too long. We have too 
long tried to bring in the Kingdom 
by addition, and the Kingdom will 
never come except by arithmetical pro- 
gression. If Peter had saved three 
thousand souls every day after Pente- 
cost, and if his so-called apostolic 



116 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

successors had had religion enough to 
do the same thing, it would have taken 
a thousand years to bring the world 
to Christ as the world was in Peter's 
day, and there would have been thirty 
new generations unaccounted for; but 
if each of the three thousand had 
gone out to save one a year, and 
each new disciple had done the same, 
the entire world would have been 
reached for Jesus Christ a whole gen- 
eration before the Gospel of John was 
written. If his blessed feet were lift- 
ing from this earth to-day in ascen- 
sion, leaving twelve men to save fifteen 
hundred million, and all the world 
were pagan besides, and the twelve 
were to go forth each to win one a 
year, and each convert were to do 
the same, before the babe born yester- 
day would reach eight and twenty 
summers, every man and woman in 
this world would have been brought 
to God, or at least have had the 
gospel preached to him or her. I 



THE FORCE llT 

submit that, in the hght of that fact, 
these nineteen hundred years of so- 
called Christian history are dangerously 
near to blasphemy when they are held 
up against the white Hght of the cross. 
And in the light of that fact the 
dream that has been in great souls, 
of the gospel being preached to every 
creature in this generation is not fan- 
ciful at all, but is of easy accomplish- 
ment if every nominal discipleship were 
vitalized into reality^' (see The Chris- 
tian Advocate, New York, December 
11, 1913). Calculate for yourself how 
this principle would apply to your own 
community. Then do what you can 
to introduce it as a method to be 
persisted in. Soon the Christian church 
would be recognized as a conquering 
force. 

The church, as a force, composed 
of a membership united to realize a 
great expectation — the coming of God^s 
kingdom — is to labor, each member in 
his place, being conformed to the 



118 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

principles and practices of the king- 
dom. Faith! Obedience! Service! 
Real faith ! Purposeful obedience ! Ag- 
gressive and intelligent service ! Chris- 
tian endeavor which is not perfunctory, 
formal, a bore; but real, based upon 
a devout consecration to God and his 
kingdom — a consecration so thorough 
as to make Christian work pleasurable, 
enjoyable, a delight. Such a consecra- 
tion as will lead Christians to cry out, 
^^Woe, woe is me, if I tell not the 
glad tidings !'' If we could — if we 
would, in view of the pressing need — 
but saturate ourselves with the great 
things of the gospel; the aw^ulness of 
sin, the possibilit}^ of repentance .and 
consequent pardon, the fact of sonship 
with God and the holy life in Christ 
Jesus, remembering on the other hand 
the facts of retribution, alienation 
from God consequent upon impen- 
itence, with the assurance of an im- 
mortality, for weal or woe, determined 
by man^s attitude toward gospel truth 



THE FORCE 119 

— how burning would be the zeal 
of our souls, how vital our service, 
how all-conquering the results! 

Fling out the banner! sin-sick souls 
That sink and perish in the strife 

Shall touch in faith its radiant hem, 
And spring immortal into life. 

(George W. Doane.) 



CHAPTER VI 
THE FIELD 

^^Say not ye, There are yet four 
months, and then cometh harvest? be- 
hold, I say unto you, Lift up your 
eyes, and look on the fields; for they 
are white already to harvest'^ (John 
4. 35). 

When Jesus came into Samaria, 
where his disciples least expected it, 
there he found a field ready for sow- 
ing, out of which was reaped at once 
an abundant harvest. The woman 
with whom he conversed at Jacob's 
Well was converted. ^^And many of 
the Samaritans of that city believed 
on him for the saying of the woman'' 
(John 4. 39). He abode there two 
days. It is written, ^^And many more 
believed because of his own word" 
(John 4. 41). That was a remarkable 
harvest. There was a quick sowing, 
and an immediate reaping. There are 

120 



THE FIELD 121 

no intimations that such experience is 
to be expected every time. Jesus him- 
self was not thus favored. But it is 
evident that the Master-Evangelist, 
with open vision, seized immediately 
the opportunity for sowing and reap- 
ing when it presented itself. And to 
us he never ceases to say, ^Tollow 
me,'^ and ^^Go, and do thou likewise^^ 
(Luke 10. 37). 

Recognizing as Christians the duty 
imparted by the great commission, it 
is pertinent indeed for us to inquire 
as to the field in which we are to 
labor, that we may return with joy 
at the great ^ ^harvest home,^' bringing 
our sheaves with us. 

I. The Revival Campaign 

The time was when men thought 
that the open church, with a rousing 
revival campaign, to which the people 
came in throngs, was the great field 
for evangelism. The bulk of the 
membership for many churches came 



122 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

from this field. Nor is this oppor- 
tunity exhausted. It still yields a 
good harvest. Occasionally, conditions 
are present — the fields are ripe unto 
the harvest — under which the revival 
campaign produces a wonderful return. 
Of course, if even one soul is truly 
converted, any expenditure of time and 
means is justified, for as Billy Bray, 
the little, illiterate Cornish miner-evan- 
gelist, used to say, ^^One soul's worth 
more 'n all o' Lunnon.'^ To-day, 
however, we face competing and di- 
verting influences exceeding anything 
our forebears knew. Providentially, 
we have opportunities and facilities, 
offering a favorable field for practical 
evangelism more far-reaching than was 
possible in our early church history, 
or ever before, in America. The re- 
vival campaign has its place. It never 
will be superseded; but it is to be 
supplemented and made effective by 
such other evangelistic opportunities 
as may be at hand. 



THE FIELD 123 

To-day, so far as the field is con- 
cerned, when we think of practical 
evangelism, a foremost embarrassment 
is the magnitude of opportunity. Our 
most accessible and most productive 
field for evangelism is the Sunday 
school. The cultivation of this field 
is worthy of our deepest devotion, our 
completest consecration of time and 
talent. In his Indianapolis address, 
Dean Birney pleaded that the church 
centralize its efforts around the con- 
servation of life instead of the reclama- 
tion of life. ^ There is just one way 
to save loss,^^ he says, ^^the incalculable 
loss that our church has sustained all 
along, and that is by feeding lambs 
instead of hunting sheep '^ (^The New 
Day in Evangelism.^' The Christian 
Advocate, December 11, 1913). He 
urges, if we cannot do both (we can), 
that we keep the lambs and let the 
few sheep stray, rather than to hunt 
a few sheep and let the lambs scatter, 
never to be found again. Cure of 



lU PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

disease is good. This no one will 
deny. But, surely, prevention is better. 
Wild oats and whirlwinds are not 
essential to salvation. Indeed, such 
sowing and reaping reduce very largely, 
not the possibility but the probability 
of salvation. Dr. Birney utters a pro- 
found truth when he says that the 
kingdom will never be here until the 
child is placed in the heart and center 
of all our prayers and efforts. The 
Sunday school makes it possible for 
the church to act on this principle. 

II. The Sunday School as a Field 

Survey with me the Sunday school 
as a field for practical evangelism. 
According to Dr. Edgar Blake, corre- 
sponding secretary of the Board of Sun- 
day schools of the Methodist Episcopal 
Church, our present (January, 1914) 
Sunday school enrollment is 4,326,934, 
which is a gain of 1,034,469 in six 
years. The increase for the past six 
years has been three times as great as 



THE FIELD 125 

for the same period preceding. Our 
Methodist Episcopal Sunday schools 
have reported the conversion of more 
than 950,000 scholars during the past 
six years, and have contributed prob- 
ably not less than that number to the 
membership of the church. Were it 
not for the accessions from the Sunday 
schools, our church membership would 
decline at the rate of 100,000 a year. 
In the year 1913 our schools report 
the conversion of more than 178,000 
scholars. Seven hundred more schools 
report the conversion of scholars this 
year than last, all of which is well 
and encouraging, too. In Dr. Blake^s 
annual report, made in January, 1914, 
from which we cull facts and figures, 
the statistical returns for the year 
1913 show that we now have: 35,632 
Sunday schools; 383,825 oflicers and 
teachers; 198,703 members of Home 
Department; 281,178 members of Cra- 
dle Roll; 3,402,278 scholars of all 
grades. 



126 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

Every denomination has a great 
opportunity for evangelism in its Sun- 
day schools. The Methodist Episcopal 
Church has the greatest, for ours is 
the largest single Sunday school con- 
stituency in the world. As Dr. Blake 
figures it, it numbers a million more 
members than all of the Baptist denom- 
inations combined. It is twice as large 
as all the Presbyterians of the United 
States and Canada. It numbers more 
than three times as many members 
as the Methodist Episcopal Church, 
South; nearly four times as many as 
the Disciples; more than six times as 
many as the Congregational; and more 
than eight times as many as the Epis- 
copalian. Truly, our Sunday schools 
offer a great field for practical evan- 
gelism! 

Our Sunday school leaders have been 
insisting for some years that the Sun- 
day school is the essential element in 
the development of the church. Their 
claim is verified bj^ the figures which 



THE FIELD 127 

they have been able to present. They 
inform us that ninety-five per cent of 
our ministers started in the Sunday 
school; ninety per cent of our church 
workers came out of the Sunday school; 
seventy per cent of our churches were 
first started as Sunday schools, and 
eighty-five per cent of our church 
membership came from the Sunday 
school. In this connection we must 
remember that five sixths of all con- 
versions occur before the passing of 
the eighteenth birthday, and that the 
average age of conversion, according 
to such painstaking investigators as 
President G. Stanley Hall, Professor 
Edwin D. Starbuck, Professor George 
A. Coe, and Professor William James, 
is about the sixteenth year. Surely, 
then, the Sunday school age is the 
most desirable for high Christian enter- 
prise. Yet an astonishingly large per- 
centage of our young people never 
profess conversion and are lost to the 
church. There is startling evidence 



128 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



that we are not measuring up to our 
opportunity. Some time ago the Wes- 
leyan Church of England appointed a 
commission to investigate this matter. 
The commission has reported that only 
ten per cent of their Sunday school 
membership are held in active member- 
ship in the church, and that an addi- 
tional ten per cent remain in a some- 
what informal relationship. Eighty per 
cent of the Sunday school member- 
ship is lost to the church entirely. 
Dr. Blake, writing of this matter in 
a personal letter, says that no such 
complete survey has as yet been made 
in our own denomination, but that 
from individual cases which have been 
brought to his attention, and from 
surveys that have been made in local 
fields, he is confident that the situa- 
tion until very recently has not been 
any better in our own denomination 
than in the Wesleyan Church. That 
is to say, after all our work in the 
Sunday school, we only succeed in 



THE FIELD 129 

saving for Christ and his church from 
ten per cent to twenty per cent of 
the young people committed to our 
charge. 

Is not that fact like the prod of a 
thorn? The achievements of the past 
and the opportunity of the present 
impel us to more effective, practical 
endeavor. There are 2,300,000 schol- 
ars in our schools who are not yet 
members of the church. Of these, 
1,500,000 are above eight years of age. 
Every one of our 383,825 officers and 
teachers should be an evangelist. Our 
most recent record shows that, work- 
ing for a whole year in this great field, 
there has been just one conversion for 
every two teachers. Is not Dr. Blake 
right when he says that it is a sorrow- 
ful showing? Yet a hopeful element 
is apparent in the steadily increasing 
emphasis being put upon personal evan- 
geHsm by the teachers, the wider ob- 
servance of Decision Day, and the 
constantly increasing number of schools 



130 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

reporting evangelistic results. If the 
gain of increase reported for 1913 
continues, within four years our Sun- 
day schools will be reporting the con- 
version of a quarter of million scholars 
annually. 

Bent upon realizing the greatest har- 
vest possible, we should proceed to 
this work with confidence and with 
high enthusiasm, for when we lead 
the child into the kingdom we are 
acting in accord with the nature and 
constitution of the child, and also in 
harmony with the will of God. The 
child has spiritual capacity. Also, if 
we understand Jesus's teachings, the 
child has spiritual hunger, and we are 
barbarous if we do not feed it. Pro- 
fessor MacMullen reminds us that 
there are still people who say that 
religious beliefs and religious habits 
are matters of mature decision, and 
the child must not be biased in such 
things but be left absolutely free from 
dictation or training, lest in later life 



THE FIELD 131 

it lose its religious rights because of 
undue influence earlier. ^^ Which pro- 
ceeds on the assumption either that 
the religious instinct comes into being 
at maturity, or that, if part of a 
child^s dowry, it, of all its instincts, 
must be left to take care of itself. 
Against the first idea all the facts 
of human development'^ — including the 
facts and figures relating to conver- 
sion presented above — ^ ^fairly shout a 
denial. It is not in the man the re- 
ligious impulse springs into life. On 
the contrary, 

The man perceives it die away 

And fade into the Hght of common day, 

which is not merely poetry, but biog- 
raphy. And the second idea says 
that what is animal and what is hu- 
man in a rudimentary way may be 
fed, but what is divine and supremely 
human must either forage for itself 
or starve. . . . The simple truth is 
that the child is a child physically, 



132 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

mentally, and spiritually, and God 
means that those who guard it shall 
see to the development of all its 
muscles and the feeding of all its 
hunger, the spiritual no less than the 
physicaF' (The Rev. Dr. Wallace Mac- 
Mullen, in ^The Child and The King- 
dom,^^ pp. 10, 11). Clearly, then, if 
we are to be workers together with 
God, we must take advantage of the 
normal conditions of age and disposi- 
tion for leading the young people to 
Christ, which is made possible by the 
Sunday school. But every Sunday 
school worker of experience knows that 
there are lines of influence, for good 
or evil, leading from the Sunday school 
to the home. The Sunday school 
comes out of the homes of the com- 
munity, and it leads us back to the 
homes. 

III. The Home as a Field 

A story is told of D. L. Moody, 
who at one time thought that it was 



THE FIELD 133 

all right if he got hold of the chil« 
dren, but he soon found that it wasn^t 
all right. The home life undid his 
work in the Sabbath school. This fact 
doubtless accounts in part for the fact 
that not more than ten per cent of 
our Sunday school scholars are won 
and held for Christ and his church. 
Mr. Moody found that he had to get 
hold of the older people. ^T used to 
illustrate this/^ he says, ^^by a parable 
that I had heard of the frogs. The 
fishes gathered a council together to 
see if the frogs could be persuaded 
to walk forward instead of backward, 
and resolved to teach the young frogs 
how to walk in the proper way, that 
they might in turn go home and teach 
the older frogs. The walking school 
for frogs was instituted and was quite 
successful. The young frogs grad- 
uated in walking forward, and were 
sent home to teach their fathers and 
mothers the correct mode. To the sur- 
prise and disappointment of the fishes, 



134 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

they found out soon afterward that it 
worked the other way. The old frogs 
had corrected the young frogs again, 
and once more the whole tribe, old 
and young, were walking backward/^ 
And so Mr. Moody concluded that 
Sabbath school work was not enough, 
that it had to be supplemented by an 
earnest and conscientious effort to 
reach the home life of the fathers 
and mothers. The fact of the matter 
is that many of the parents of the 
children whom we meet in the Sunday 
school are, in so far as religion is 
concerned, walking backward. It is 
not enough to instruct the children to 
go forward. If our work is to be in 
any large measure abiding, parents 
must be reached as well. 

The homes of a community do 
present a field for active Christian 
endeavor. Many a home is white for 
the harvest. If the Christians of the 
community are all enrolled as members 
of our churches, and if only true 



THE FIELD 135 

Christians are saved souls, then there 
is a multitude in every center of 
population which should be sought for 
Jesus Christ. A large proportion of 
this multitude will not come to church. 
The church should go to the home; 
but before we speak of methods, let 
us inform ourselves specifically as to 
the opportunity. Make a religious 
census of your own community and 
compare it with the population. In 
the suburb of New York city (Hemp- 
stead, Long Island, New York), where 
this study is being made, accord- 
ing to the Brooklyn Eagle Almanac 
for 1914, the church membership of 
the village is 2,003. The population 
is approximately 6,000 persons. Our 
county, Nassau, in 1910 had a pop- 
ulation of 83,930, and a total church 
membership of 28,834. Our neighbor, 
Kings County, which is the Borough 
of Brooklyn, in 1910, had a popula- 
tion of 1,634,351; in that year the 
churches of the borough reported a 



136 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

membership of 590,890 persons. It 
should be said that in the three cases 
the figures include the Roman Catholic 
Church which reports parishioners as 
distinguished from members. Calcula- 
tion will show that in each one of 
these three units of population the 
proportion of church membership to 
population is approximately as one to 
three. While this proportion probably 
will not be maintained throughout con- 
tinental United States, the total of 
the church membership being 37,280,- 
000, as compiled for 1913 by the 
authority of the Federal Council of 
Churches, by Dr. H. K. Carroll, still 
it is evident that in many of our 
communities upward of two thirds of 
the population are not professing Chris- 
tians. These persons are to be found 
in the homes of America; they afford 
a universal field for practical evan- 
gelism. Included in this field are all 
sorts and conditions of people: There 
are nominal Christians and persons 



THE FIELD 137 

who are Christian in their sympathies, 
many of whom may be easily reached. 
Among them are the multitudes of 
the children, so many of whom are 
to be found in our Sunday schools. A 
large part of our growing foreign 
population is not included in the 
church census. Some of them, like 
the Italians, while nominally Roman 
Catholic, are actually quite indifferent 
to the Roman Catholic Church. There 
are possibly a million Jews in Greater 
New York; only 35,321 of them were 
enrolled as members of synagogues in 
1913 (compiled from Eagle Almanac, 
1914). In addition to these there is 
the evil element — all that is included 
in the phrase ^^the underworld^ ^ — and 
every propagator of wrong, which is 
so largely represented by the saloons, 
the gambHng places, and other bad 
resorts. These are actively and ag- 
gressively antagonistic to all good in- 
fluences of a religious and Christian 
character. Such conditions complicate 



138 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

the difficulties, but they intensify the 
need, and challenge the faith and con- 
secration of the Christian community. 
There are two classes of homes 
which we find. One class has mem- 
bers of the family who are Chris- 
tians. A single child from the Sunday 
school may alone be holding aloft 
the torch of Christ. In some in- 
stances it is true that a little child 
does lead them. But in the majority 
of cases we must rely upon Christian 
parents to rear their little ones in 
the nurture and admonition of the 
Lord. We must not leave the child 
free to make religious decisions in 
mature life. Evil influences are not 
deferred. They are always impinging 
and intruding. Otherrsase, why were 
we taught to pray, ^^Lead us not 
into temptation' 7 Parents, when they 
fail to lead the child as they ought 
in this matter are hostile to the high- 
est good of their ovm. offspring. They, 
who should be the best friends, are 



THE FIELD 139 

actually the foes of the child. The 
second class of homes has no loyal 
Christian in the household. Their chil- 
dren may be attendants upon the Sun- 
day school, or they meet our children 
in the public school or upon the 
playground. This fact enables us to 
extend our constituency list. Or they 
are neighbors of some of our church 
members. Soon or late our people 
should find a point of religious con- 
tact. It may be very soon, as when 
they move into the community as 
strangers and suffer the pangs of home- 
sickness. Then a word of welcome and 
of kindness is apt to be remembered. 
That word may be one link in the 
chain by which we shall bind our 
neighbors to Jesus Christ. Need gives 
opportunity and brings welcome. Ill- 
ness, adversity, and death, with its 
sorrows, open doors as of steel shut 
against us apparently forever. May 
we ever be ready to enter in! The 
home and the Church must join forces 



140 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

in intelligent and increasing service 
looking to the salvation of the chil- 
dren and of all others within the 
field of our influence. 

At this time, in Xew York city, 
the Roman Catholic Church is plan- 
ning to gather its 3^oung people who 
attend the public schools into weekday 
classes for religious instruction. They 
act wisely. To follow their example 
would make evident our wisdom. To 
be sure, the work of our Sunday schools 
exceeds theirs by far. But it is in- 
adequate. ]\Iany of the Roman Cath- 
olic children are in parochial schools and 
receive regular daily religious instruc- 
tion. Every child, without exception, 
should have definite and systematic 
religious training under the tutelage 
of a sjTnpathetic teacher, for religion 
really cannot be taught; it must be 
caught. Otherw^ise, there is loss to 
the child, the famih^, the community, 
and the state — loss which can never 
be repaired. 



THE FIELD 141 

Christians, let us lift our eyes unto 
the fields! If they are not yet white, 
ready for the harvest, let us sow the 
seed, with tears if need be, and cul- 
tivate them with the fidelity of amaz- 
ing sacrifice if so required, ever ready 
with eager sickles to gather the har- 
vest of redeemed souls, that, in His 
own day, we may return to Him, 
bringing our sheaves with us. 



CHAPTER VII 

The Campaign 

In Saint Paul's second letter to 
Timothy, whom he expected to be his 
successor in apostolic labors, he ad- 
monished him to preach the word, to 
be instant in season, out of season, 
and to do the work of an evangelist 
(2 Tim. 4. 2, 5). That this counsel 
was given to an individual does not 
impair its appHcabihty to any and 
all who are Christians. It has been 
shown that the world can never be 
evangelized by the most devoted serv- 
ice of the ministers and the mission- 
aries working alone. If the kingdom 
of God is to come to the race in any 
full measure, there must be a general 
movement among Christians. In writ- 
ing to Timothy, Saint Paul gives us 
a principle of procedure which is sound 
and which will prove efficient in prac- 

142 



THE CAMPAIGN 143 

tice. Christian conquest requires an 
unceasing evangelism. 

Our far-reaching field for Christian 
endeavor extends to the last person 
on the planet. That we have a great 
force for the prosecution of the cam- 
paign has been indicated. This force, 
like a conquering army, is to enter 
the field for its campaign of conquest. 

I. The Campaign and Its Purpose 

A campaign consists of the opera- 
tions of any army, or force of any kind, 
for the accomplishment of some par- 
ticular object. The Christian Church 
is a force engaged in operations which 
anticipate the accomplishment of a 
specific task, namely, the deliverance 
of men from sin, its power and its 
consequences. That is, we are set to do 
the will of God that evil may be over- 
come in human lives. The Adversary 
is ever busy. Therefore, the evangelist 
must be ever alert and active. There 
is no discharge in this warfare. 



144 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

II. Methods 

^Treach the word.'^ ^^Do the work 
of an evangelist^^ (2 Tim. 4. 2, 5). 
The doctrine of Christ crucified for 
the sins of the whole world is to 
be preached, proclaimed. The truth 
must be enforced that there is no 
salvation but by faith in Jesus Christ. 
The matter is urgent. Apparent op- 
portunities for service are to be seized. 
Other opportunities are to be found. 
Stated times and usual places are not 
to be neglected. Yet it will be under- 
stood that any time and every place 
are proper for God's work. In all 
the ministry of the church the proc- 
lamation of the evangel, which is 
evangelism, should have a foremost 
place. The soul-winning work of the 
church should be constant, the cam- 
paign should be unceasing. And we 
make a serious mistake when we rely 
upon the public appeal, the profes- 
sional proclamation of the word, as 



THE CAMPAIGN 145 

our chief evangelistic agency. Such 
appeal should be made, must be made. 
We may well put more emphasis upon 
it than we do. Yet we should not 
depend merely upon the minister to 
be the evangelist and the church serv- 
ice the opportunity. Every organ- 
ization should be in alliance with the 
church service. All the officers and 
teachers in the organizations should be 
the loyal allies of the pastor and of 
each other, and all the members of 
these organizations should be urged to 
active endeavor, doing the work of 
evangelists, in the duly appointed serv- 
ices, as also in many if not all of 
our church and social activities. All 
our church enterprises, even though re- 
mote from evangelism in our thought, 
should tend to maintain the evan- 
gelistic note. If the social, the lec- 
ture, the entertainment — the service 
of any kind — is such as to discredit 
the evangel, if its spirit antagonizes 
the gospel, it has no place in the 



146 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

work of the church, because it inter- 
feres with the accomplishment of its 
purpose. 

Further, the campaign should give 
a larger place to the Christian nurture 
of the children. Of course the children 
should be present at the regular serv- 
ices of the church. Parents too 
should insist upon the attendance of 
their children at the sessions of the 
Sunday school and at all the meet- 
ings provided for the religious in- 
struction of the young people. This 
is vital evangelism. More: parents 
should make time for religious in- 
struction in the home also. The family 
altar should not become ancient his- 
tory. It should be a potent influence 
in every Christian home. ^^If our 
religion is true,'^ remarks a wise man, 
^Ve are in duty bound to preach it.^' 
He who thus tells the good tidings is a 
practical evangelist. Sometime since, 
in Chicago, the papal delegate, who 
is the official representative of the 



THE CAMPAIGN 14T 

Pope in this country, said to a large 
Roman Catholic gathering: ^ ^Whenever 
there is a decline in faith and morals 
it can be restored through the training 
of the children. From one child rightly 
reared a whole generation of Christians 
can come. What they receive to-day 
they will give fifteen years hence. 
The great task of the Church of Christ 
is the training of the children.'^ We 
may add that even in an age of faith, 
if the religious training of the children 
be neglected, at once will begin a 
decline in faith and morals. Pastors 
and people must find a way in fuller 
measure of providing for the adequate 
and sympathetic religious training and 
inspiration of our children and young 
people. Shall we not make this a 
definite part of our campaign? We 
may seriously ask too if this work 
does not extend very definitely to the 
recreational life of our people, young 
and old. The problem of amusements 
is not to be dodged forever. While 



148 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

the Christian worker dodges and fails 
to provide vent for innocent tenden- 
cies, his friends and his children give 
themselves to indulgence, it may be, 
in degrading amusements. Surely, it 
must be that in the program of Him 
who entered into the joys and gaj^eties 
of the marriage feast there are satis- 
fying and pure recreations. 

At this point we make a distinction 
between evangehsm and revivalism. 
EvangeHsm is the constant note in 
the life and work of the normal Chris- 
tian; it is the unceasing endeavor of 
the true Christian Church. The revival 
meeting is a method of evangelism, a 
desirable and necessary method. We 
may think of evangelism as the seed- 
sowing and cultivation period, and of 
revivalism as the harvest time. The 
revival meeting means unusual effort; 
pressure is brought to bear; all the 
workers are engaged and every en- 
deavor is intensified, that nothing may 
be lost. Various plans are used in 



THE CAMPAIGN 149 

revivalism. Two classes of plans are 
apparent. A church may conduct a 
revival campaign independently of any 
other, or there may be a union of 
two or more churches. 

When it is proposed to act in- 
dependently, as also in a union ef- 
fort, the question arises. What is the 
best season for the revival meeting? 
Different experts give different an- 
swers. That far-famed Presbyterian 
minister. Dr. Theodore L. Cuyler, in 
his very fruitful evangelistic ministry, 
ever watched with open eye and ear 
for the manifestation of the Spirit's 
presence. The first signs of such 
special manifestation found him ready 
for action. Nothing was permitted to 
interfere. At once a series of meet- 
ings would be instituted. Church offi- 
cials and workers would be marshaled 
for the campaign, and a large in- 
gathering of souls was the result. 
^T have no doubt,'' writes Dr. Cuyler 
in his Recollections of a Long Life 



150 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

(page 85), ^'that very often a spark 
of divine influence is allowed to die 
for want of being fanned by prayer 
and prompt labors, whereas, it is some- 
times dashed out, as by a bucket of 
cold water throTsu on by inconsistent 
or quarrelsome church members. It is 
to Christians that Saint Paul sent 
the message, ^Quench not the Spirit.' '^ 
The Lafayette Avenue Presbyterian 
Church, Brooklyn, New York, testifies 
to the value of Dr. Cm^ler^s plan. Dis- 
tinguished from Dr. Cuyler's method 
of watchful waiting is that of the 
Rev. Dr. Charles L. Goodell, of the 
New York Conference of the Method- 
ist Episcopal Church, who is the ex- 
ponent of a regular revival period. 
Said Dr. Goodell in his famous address 
at Northfield, delivered August 11, 
1906: ''1 say in July, ^Brethren, we 
are going to take the month of Jan- 
uary for revival services; whether the 
wind blows high or blows low, we are 
going to take that month. ^ I have a 



THE CAMPAIGN 151 

notion that God does not need to be 
importuned to be favorable in our 
case. . . . God is waiting to be gracious. 
The whole air is full of Pentecosts 
that have never come down because 
there was no place for the cloven 
tongues. ... I believe in having a 
special revival season'' (The Price of 
Winning Souls, p. 24f.). Truly, this 
plan has richly rewarded Dr. Goodell, 
for he is able to testify, ^T say to His 
glory that in these twenty-five years of 
my ministry I have never received 
less than one hundred souls a year, 
and in some years many times that 
number; and in all these twenty-five 
years I have not passed a single 
monthly communion service without 
receiving some into the church'' 
(Ibid., p. 9). In practice both methods 
may be employed. An annual revival 
service is well worth while. If that 
annual effort is made in January, and 
unusual interest should develop in June 
or October, or at any other time, with 



152 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

Dr. Cuyler, let the pastor of the 
church be ready for action. 

Another question intrudes: Shall we 
employ a professional evangelist, or 
shall we be our own evangelists? Some 
there are who have a strong antipathy 
to professional evangelists; yet they 
have been at work in the church from 
New Testament days. Saint Paul tells 
us that when Christ ascended up on 
high '^He gave some, apostles; and 
some, prophets; and some, evangelists; 
and some, pastors and teachers; for 
the perfecting of the saints, for the 
work of the ministry, for the edifying 
of the body of Christ" (Eph. 4. 11, 12). 
In our own times the work of Moody 
and Sankey, Torrey, Chapman and 
Alexander, Gypsy Smith, WilUam A. 
Sunday, and many others has brought 
blessing to multitudes. Doubtless their 
efforts have strengthened the Christian 
Church. Some ministers and others 
believe that every pastor should be 
his own evangeHst, but there are few 



THE CAMPAIGN 153 

ministers or churches which follow any- 
one theory in this matter. The best 
of pastor evangelists will employ pro- 
fessional helpers at times, and, it may 
be, with most satisfactory results. This 
is the testimony of Dr. Cuyler: ^^It 
has not been my practice to invite 
the labors of an evangelist; but in 
January, 1872, Mr. Dwight L. Moody, 
with whom I had as yet but a slight 
acquaintance, . . . said to the super- 
intendent of our mission, ^What a nice 
place this is to hold meetings in!' '' 
The meetings were held and the re- 
vival came. '^It spread to the parent 
church, and over one hundred con- 
verts made their public confession of 
Christ before our communion table'' 
(Recollections of a Long Life, p. 90). 

Should a professional evangelist be 
invited, it must be understood that 
he will have his peculiarities, some of 
which may not please some good peo- 
ple. It is assumed that the character 
of the evangelist is unquestioned, other- 



154 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

wise he would not have been employed. 
It may be that his power will be in- 
creased over the many by his peculiar- 
ities. At any rate, the church and 
the workers must dismiss all suspicion 
and silence criticism if success is ex- 
pected. If this cannot be done, it 
were better to dismiss the evangelist 
at once. We cannot cramp a man's 
personality and expect him to do his 
best. 

There are very able ministers who 
have not had success in their own 
revival services. I recall one such 
who was my pastor. He was a mighty 
preacher. He built up the churches 
of which he had charge. No man 
has ever had a greater constructive 
religious influence upon my own life. 
Many others bear a like testimon5^ 
Yet he felt inabihty in directing a 
revival meeting, and confessed it. On 
the other hand, it must be recog- 
nized that there are persons who have 
special endowments, the value of which 



THE CAMPAIGN 155 

has been increased by experience, which 
make them pecuharly effective as evan- 
gehsts. They have a way of getting 
to the conscience and the heart. They 
are able to arouse the indifferent, to 
bring the unconverted to the point 
of decision. Their worth has been 
proved by their ministry. It is true, 
doubtless, that they can accomplish 
wonders, under God, which otherwise 
might never be realized. Nevertheless, 
it is my personal conviction, based 
upon experience, that if the officials 
and Christian leaders of the church 
will give themselves loyally to the 
task of practical evangelism, uniting 
in the preparatory work heartily, en- 
gaging enthusiastically in the revival 
meeting by giving personal invitation 
to others and attending the services 
themselves, never permitting the old 
flag to touch the ground, the pastor 
will rarely need a professional evan- 
gelist to assist him, and the work will 
be satisfactory and efficient to an un- 



156 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

usual degree. Even if the evangelist 
be invited, if there be conversions, 
the people must needs help. If there 
be a lack of cooperation, disappoint- 
ment as to results is a foregone con- 
clusion. 

At times the churches of a com- 
munity will engage in the union plan 
of revival service. In villages and 
smaU towns all the evangelical churches 
uisiy unite to their advantage. The 
same is true of large cities, as demon- 
strated by the work of Chapman and 
Alexander, Wihiam A. Sundaj^, and 
others. Chapman and Alexander con- 
duct what is known as a simultaneous 
campaign. The city is divided into 
many groups of churches. Each group 
will select a central church where the 
meetings of the group will be con- 
ducted by the appointed evangelist and 
his gospel singer. There will be one 
great central meeting place where Dr. 
Chapman and Mr. Alexander will have 
charge. Many committees will arrange 



THE CAMPAIGN 157 

the details of the campaign and for 
special phases of the work esteemed 
essential to largest success, as Prayer 
Committee, Woman's Auxiliary, For- 
eign Tongues, Young People, Boys, 
Shop Meetings, Noonday Meetings, 
Publicity and Press. Then there are 
committees on Evangelists and Sing- 
ers, Church Music, Personal Work and 
Ushers, Finance, Entertainment, etc. 
In Mr. Sunday's work the Tabernacle 
in which he preaches is made the 
center of the religious endeavor of the 
community during his mission, and for 
the whole period all the services in all 
the cooperating churches are post- 
poned, with the exception of the Sun- 
day school sessions. He too has a 
corps of expert workers, and special 
meetings are arranged for factory em- 
ployes at the noon hour, for business 
men, for business women, for students, 
and for every class of persons in the 
city. Every detail of the campaign is 
worked out to a nicety. A somewhat 



158 PIL\CTICAL EVAXGELISM 

diflFerent method of proced'jre is that 
which has been employed by the Gien- 
eral Conference Commission on Ag- 
gressive Evangelism of the ^f ' list 
Episcopal Church, known a^ ^vni/per- 
ative Evangelism. In general, this 
plan is shmlar to that used by Chapman 
and Alexander, excepting that its woik 
is a miion of Methodist Elpiscopal 

SueiL movements as these have a 
special value. The churches of a 
community, without fear of trespass, 
can make a miited appeaL Every 
home can be entered. They prove 
what may have been far from evident 
— that there is a unity in Christendom. 

We are not divided, 

AH one body we. 
One in hope and doctrine. 

One in charity. 

This refers especially to an undenom- 
inational movement. It is true that 
such a movement has its disadvantages 



THE CAMPAIGN 159 

and drawbacks. There is the danger 
that too much rehance will be placed 
upon methods which in themselves are 
good, but which are only a means to 
an end. Then there are workers who 
may not feel a sense of responsibility 
for a large movement as they would 
for one in their own church. There 
are persons too who find it difficult 
to labor under the unusual conditions; 
they are accustomed to a certain pro- 
cedure. Deviation therefrom confuses 
them, causing them to lose interest, 
it may be to become adverse critics. 
Such a movement, therefore, requires a 
large resource of sweet charity, a de- 
termination on the part of Christians 
to live and work together in harmony, 
striving for one thing — the advantage 
of God^s kingdom, and not merely the 
advancement of one particular church 
society. The workers must possess 
self-control and self-renunciation, but 
out of it, if the Holy Spirit be per- 
mitted to lead the way, amity between 



160 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

Christians and friendship between God 
and man will come. Then, a properly 
conducted campaign of this kind ap- 
peals to many who would not heed 
the ordinary revival summons. 

Such a movement, however, is not 
always practicable. The forces can- 
not be united. There is evident need 
of special effort. Seed-sowing and cul- 
tivation have been done. The warmth 
and activity of the revival service 
makes the harvest natural for many 
who might otherwise be deaf and 
mute. So the individual church will 
find it prudent and necessary to pro- 
ceed independently — and will do so. 

But whatever maj^ be the plan as 
to the revival meeting, little will be 
accomplished unless the principles al- 
ready" enunciated are faitlifully used. 
God^s Spirit must be heeded. Men 
must seek to save their fellows. The 
textbook, the Holy Bible, must be 
mastered. Praj^r must be emploj^ed. 
Yes, and work must be done. The 



THE CAMPAIGN 161 

force must contest the field if there 
is to be a conquest. The preachers and 
evangehsts who have been most suc- 
cessful have been and are prodigious 
workers. There must be an unceasing 
effort if there is to be the greatest 
result. 

Let no mistake be made : preparation 
and cooperation, whether for an in- 
dependent or a union movement, are 
essential to success. Surely, the pas- 
tor and members of a Christian church 
will not expect a successful revival 
unless there be vigilant and intelligent 
preparation therefor. The farmer does 
not expect to reap if there has been 
no seed-sowing and no cultivation of 
the soil. Nor does he anticipate a 
manifold return if the growing crops 
are interfered with and uprooted. He 
protects them as best he may from 
the ravages of beasts and birds and 
vermin. Likewise the Christian worker 
will be a seed-sower and cultivator 
and a protector of his field. In pulpit 



162 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

ministrations and in pastoral service 
in the homes of his people, and else- 
where, the minister of Jesus Christ 
will be an unceasing herald of the 
evangel. Thus he plants seed and cul- 
tivates his field. Christian workers in 
every department of the church life, 
even when immersed in the demands 
of business and social engagements will, 
by consistency of conduct and prudent 
counsels, study to show themselves 
approved unto God, workmen that 
needeth not to be ashamed, rightly 
dividing the word of truth. Any 
church undertaking which cannot be 
employed, directly or indirectly, as a 
means of saving men should be sus- 
pected as improper. I believe that 
there is no legitimate social function 
which cannot be used as an evan- 
gelistic agenc}^ in that it affords op- 
portunity for making and cementing 
friendships, out of which influences to 
the religious advantage of the unsaved 
may be put in motion. So that, in 



THE CAMPAIGN 163 

the revival campaign, the various or- 
ganizations of the church should be 
considered and engaged. Such or- 
ganizations as the official board, the 
Brotherhood, the Ladies' Aid Society, 
the Epworth League or Christian En- 
deavor Society, the Woman's For- 
eign Missionary Society, the Woman's 
Home Missionary Society should pro- 
vide helpers in the meetings and call- 
ers upon the people. The mere reg- 
ular attendance of these persons is 
helpful. Such attendance should be a 
matter of honor and loyalty to the 
cause. It will, in many instances, be 
supplemented by personal effort of in- 
estimable value as opportunity presents 
itself. Gospel singing, Christian con- 
versation and prayer at the altar or 
in the inquiry room — in some such 
ways the consecrated worker will find 
a chance to tell the story. The Sunday 
school and the Junior Epworth League 
should never be overlooked. Here, as 
we have observed before, is a most 



164 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

fruitful field white for the harvest. 
Sunday school officers and teachers 
and Junior workers should be actively 
and sympathetically evangelistic, and 
by the instruction of the lips and the 
inspiration of the life should never 
cease to influence young people for 
Jesus Christ. Naturally, there will be 
in the program of every Sunday school 
a carefully worked out plan for De- 
cision Day services, with which pastor 
and superintendent, with officers and 
teachers, will be in perfect accord. 
The effort is certain to be successful 
when wise preparation has been made, 
followed by calm, yet earnest and 
hearty appeal. It should be remem- 
bered, however, that success in this 
endeavor must be followed by regular, 
intelligent Christian culture, and that 
otherwise much of the work done will 
be nugatory. This, indeed, is true in 
every case. Christian converts must 
be nurtured if they are to become 
mature and fruitful. The fruitless 



THE CAMPAIGN 165 

Christian, according to the Book, is 
a Christian only in name. This is 
confirmed by Jesus^s parable of the 
vine (John 15), in which he says, 
^ ^Herein is my Father glorified, that 
ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be 
my disciples^^ (John 15. 8). Of course 
the convert should be led to commit 
himself publicly as soon as possible. 
He should repeat his commitment fre- 
quently. He should be counseled to 
join some branch of the Christian 
Church and to give himself actively 
to some practical form of Christian 
endeavor which will be directed toward 
reaching the unsaved and in building 
up the saved. Bible study of a de- 
votional character is essential, and the 
practice of prayer is necessary. It is 
almost a certainty that such habits 
will produce success in the Christian 
life. Certain it is that without them 
the Christian will be doomed to failure. 
Whether we are planning for De- 
cision Day in the Sunday school or 



166 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

any kind of a revival service in con- 
nection with the church, the matter 
of preparation is essential. It is true 
that great revivals have come occa- 
sionally without conscious and deUb- 
erate preparation. Dr. J. 0. Peck, 
in his classic on evangelism, The Re- 
vival and the Pastor, tells of such a 
spontaneous revival which came under 
the ministry of Dr. Lyman Beecher. 
'^It came suddenly and powerfully. It 
swept the town with mighty power. 
After it was over Dr. Beecher was 
visiting a bedridden member of his 
church in a remote part of the town. 
This member told him that day after 
day for weeks he had felt a great 
burden of prayer for the unsaved, and 
that he began at one end of the to\\Ti 
and prayed for each household until 
he had included every family. Then, 
as if this were not enough, he prayed 
for each family again. In an instant 
Dr. Beecher knew from whence the 
revival came. It was born in the 



I 



THE CAMPAIGN 167 

heart of that bedridden mighty wrestler 
with God'' (p. 170)/ It is evident, 
therefore, that the spontaneous revival 
was really one which had been pre- 
pared for by the faithful, prayerful 
ministry of a shut-in and suffering 
invalid, as well as by the fidelity of 
Mr. Beecher, the minister of the 
church. 

When all has been said and done, 
plans and methods are of practical 
noneffect apart from the mind which 
was in Christ Jesus — the mind which 
has as its supreme purpose the doing 
of God's will. The spirit of sincerity, 
of enthusiasm, of zealous purpose, 
based upon personal experience and 
glowing faith, engendering a deep con- 
secration to Christian service as soul- 
winners, is essential if the greatly 
desired results are to be achieved. 
This spirit w^ill seize the opportunity 
which is apparent and will make the 
opportunity which does not appear of 
itself. 



168 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

There are certain musical melodies 
which have gripped the human heart 
—"Old Black Joe/' "Home, Sweet 
Home/' "Jesus, Lover of My Soul/' 
The composer, appreciating the beauty 
of the melody, produces a piece based 
on that melody but with infinite varia- 
tions. The musician knows that the 
theme is ever apparent, though almost 
concealed at times. It may be very 
soft in the treble, yet it is there. 
It may be distinctly' and powerfully 
sounded in the bass, so that no one 
mistakes. Then, again, all the parts 
unite in singing the song as the whole 
world knows it. This will serve as a 
figure, illustrating how evangelism can 
be made the dominant note in Chris- 
tian work, while all other interests 
receive proper attention. Christianity 
is a great sj^mphony, elaborate in its 
proportions and grand in its purposes. 
It does concern itself with every proper 
human interest. As we study its 
teachings, as we listen to its wonder- 



THE CAMPAIGN 169 

ful music, in minor or major, low or 
high, we catch the strains of an old 
message, an angel's message, FEAR 
NOT: FOR, BEHOLD, I BRING 
YOU GOOD TIDINGS OF GREAT 
JOY, WHICH SHALL BE TO ALL 
PEOPLE (Luke 2. 10). It is the 
evangel. And he who really hears 
that message must tell the tale. 



APPENDIX 

SOME PLANS FOR PRACTICAL 
EVANGELISM 

I. For the Local Church 

L Leadership 

Whether the pastor is the evan- 
gelist himself or has invited an out- 
side evangelist to help him in the 
revival campaign, the pastor must be 
the leader. The final responsibility is 
so largely his that he should be ex- 
pected to command the situation. Of 
course it is assumed that the pastor 
is a Christian, possessed of common 
sense and consecration. 

Ordinarily, with wisdom the revival 
campaign may be planned for annually. 

2. Support 

a. The official board of the church 
should commit itself by resolution and 
by the personal consecration of its 

170 



APPENDIX 171 

members to this essential and benefi- 
cent work. They should constitute 
themselves a royal guard, ever sup- 
porting their pastor and leader, and 
encouraging him to go forward in the 
fight. 

b. The oflScial board should author- 
ize a Committee on Evangelism. Let 
it consist of the pastor as chairman^ 
the Sunday school superintendent, the 
Brotherhood president, the Epworth 
League president, the Junior Epworth 
League superintendent, the Ladies' Aid 
Society president, the presidents re- 
spectively of the Woman's Home Mis- 
sionary Society and of the Woman's 
Foreign Missionary Society, the pres- 
idents of any other vital organizations 
which may be peculiar to the local 
church, together with such other out- 
standing persons in the church whose 
talents and character commend them 
as efficient advisers and helpers. 

These officers of organizations are 
the pastor's lieutenants throughout the 



172 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 



year. They have charge and leader- 
ship of detachments of Christian work- 
ers, and through them each group 
is to be pledged to earnest, practical 
evangelism in the revival campaign. 
Some of the leaders of detachments 
are in a position to help greatly. Take, 
for instance, the opportunity of the 
Sunday school superintendent. 

The Sunday school gives the church 
its most accessible evangelistic oppor- 
tunity. The superintendent, his officers 
and teachers, led by the pastor, will 
plan definitely and prayerfully for a 
clear, straightforw^ard appeal, or series 
of appeals, to the members of the 
school, especially those who have 
passed eight or ten years of age, to 
be made during the campaign. It 
may be wise, if departments meet 
separately, to make a special appeal 
to each department, as the Junior, 
Intermediate, and Senior. Of course 
it will be recognized that always in 
this most serious and important bus- 



APPENDIX 173 

iness in which Christians may engage, 
methods must be adjusted to fit local 
conditions, whether in the Sunday 
school or any other department. There 
are various plans, known by different 
names, which have been used in Sun- 
day school evangelism. We commend 
as a thoroughgoing and very practical 
method that which was developed by 
Bishop Henderson in his work, a de- 
scription of which is given in an 
attractive booklet entitled Decision 
Day, which can be procured from The 
Methodist Book Concern, at small cost. 
In the Junior Epworth League, the 
Boys' Brigade, the Boy Scouts, the 
Brotherhood it may be possible to 
reach some by a special appeal who 
otherwise would be missed. One who 
is familiar with any workable De- 
cision Day plan for the Sunday school 
will be able to devise a program which 
will be effective in a Junior Epworth 
League, or like service. 



174 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

3. Policy 

As in the case of the Sunday school, 
it will be the aim to enlist all the help- 
ers possible — oflfieers, teachers, class 
leaders, and all Christians connected 
with the various organizations and the 
€hurch itself. 

When the time for the revival cam- 
paign has been fixed care will be 
taken to insure a clear field for the 
work, be the period for a week, a 
month, or longer. The members of 
the committee will, of course, advise 
their respective organizations of the 
time selected, that they may plan 
their meetings and their work accord- 
ingly. Even regular meetings of such 
societies should not be held if the 
hour of meeting conflicts with any 
service of the campaign. The members 
of the society should make a special 
effort to be present at the revival 
service at such a time, thus testifying 
to their interest and lending their 
practical support. It should be possi- 



APPENDIX 175 

ble to run the campaign without em- 
barrassment ^^fuU speed ahead/' 

Those having the matter in charge 
will see to it that announcement of 
the proposed services is made, using 
every available agency including public 
and private invitation, pastoral letters, 
church calendar, local newspapers, at- 
tractive invitation cards, etc. This is 
highly important. It must needs be 
thoroughly done or the people who 
should be reached may not even know 
what is planned. It were well to 
accentuate the announcements further 
by a series of cottage or neighborhood 
prayer meetings wherever practical. 
These meetings may be held during 
one or two weeks preceding the regular 
campaign, on evenings when no service 
is held at the church. Several meet- 
ings may be held simultaneously on 
one night in different parts of the 
parish. Thus two or three nights a 
week may be used profitably. The 
number of meetings held will be de- 



176 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

termined by the size of the parish 
and the number of available, com- 
petent leaders. The meetings should 
not exceed an hour and a half in 
length. They should begin on time 
and end promptly. All the neighbors 
should be invited personally to be 
present, and at the meetings attention 
should be called to the plans for 
the future and the interest and per- 
sonal help of all Christians solicited 
for the whole campaign. Yet the 
spirit of devotion and of prayer should 
be dominant. Conversions may take 
place. Sometimes the most effective 
results will be realized in these small 
group meetings. Each meeting will 
have a leader — the best leader avail- 
able. The leaders may be members 
of the committee on evangelism, or 
others more competent may be ap- 
pointed, if accessible. 

If the pastor is to be his own evan- 
gelist, unless he be a veritable genius, 
he may at once deepen the interest 



APPENDIX 17T 

by requesting individual members of 
his committee, each representing his 
own organization, to give the revival 
addresses at meetings during a full 
week or more. This will tend to tie 
both leaders and their organizations to 
the work. 

The writer is convinced that when 
the revival meeting is under way there 
is no more important factor in pro- 
moting success or insuring failure than 
the manner in which the invitation is 
presented. Careful preparation for 
^ ^casting the net'' should be made. 
Whether seekers are urged to show 
their desire by lifting their hands, 
standing, coming forward to the altar, 
going to an inquiry room, or signing 
a card — one or more — the evangelist 
needs the most complete mastery of 
himself and the situation and the cer- 
tain and conscious presence of God's 
Holy Spirit. We would urge pastors 
to study to master this part of the 
service where so many fail. The invi- 



178 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

tation service must not be unduly 
lengthened, yet many a campaign has 
been saved by tenacity in some one 
or more after meetings. 

Friday night may be set aside as 
young people's night, with a special 
program and appeal. 

Of course pains wiU be taken to 
provide attractive music and magnetic 
musical leadership for all the services. 
Not highly artistic solos lacking in 
personal interest, but sjinpathetic, spir- 
itual hjTnns intelligently and earnestly 
sung are desirable. 

The pastor should be the busiest 
man in the community. His morn- 
ings will be given to the devotional 
and intellectual preparation necessary 
for the evening service. Afternoons 
will be spent largely in pastoral visita- 
tion, following up inquirers and prom- 
ising cases, however Uttle or great their 
apparent interest. A list of all such 
persons will be kept carefully, with 
the names of all who make decision 



J 



APPENDIX 179 

for Christ, and before the campaign is 
over, or within a week thereafter, if 
possible, the pastor should call per- 
sonally on all such and satisfy him- 
self of their religious status. If light 
has not come he may be able to lead 
them out of the shadows. Most of 
those who have accepted Christ, he 
will be able to welcome into church 
fellowship. They may be received a 
few at a time on successive Sundays 
during the campaign, or in a large 
company on the last Sunday or the 
Sunday following. This pastoral vis- 
itation is especially important, as it 
relates to the children and the young 
people. It is usually best to confer 
with parents concerning their children 
who have shown religious interest. To 
enlist the sympathetic assistance of 
parents often means a rich Christian 
life for the children. Frequently irre- 
ligious parents are brought to Christ 
as the pastor thus confers with them 
concerning their children. This pas- 



,180 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

toral work, requiring it may be more 
than a hundred calls in a week, is 
hard, hard work. It would be drudgery 
were it not so blessed and vital. If 
not done, a large part of the really 
effective work of the meetings may be 
lost to the church. When carefully 
and prayerfully pursued, this pastoral 
evangelism will often produce a fruit- 
age otherwise undreamed of. 

Then, if results are to be conserved, 
following the revival effort there will 
be weeks and months of constructive 
work, during which the great vitaHties 
of the faith will be made the familiar 
and intimate property, in so far as 
possible, of all the converts. The 
medium of instruction and inspiration 
will be the regular church services and 
such special classes as the number and 
state in life of the converts may re- 
quire. There should be special instruc- 
tion for children, for young people, 
and also for adults. 

Such a method, quickened by the 



APPENDIX 181 

principles enunciated in the foregoing 
chapters, should be eflfective in pro- 
moting religious interest and decision 
for Christ in any community. 

Having the willing spirit, two things 
are essential that successful revival 
service may be achieved in a church 
and its community: First, plan the 
work. Second, work the plan. 

II. Foe a Community Movement 

The -fundamental principles for a 
community revival movement are to 
be found in the plans detailed above, 
be there two, or three, or more churches 
involved. 

1. Leadership 

As the leaders of their respective 
churches, the pastors must agree upon 
the proposition to unite their forces 
for an aggressive Christian movement. 
They may decide that they will be 
their own evangelists, arranging a plan 
of rotation in preaching. Then it is 
profitable and advisable to employ a 



182 PIL\CTICAL EVANGELISM 

Gospel singer, who can do solo work 
and organize and lead a chorus choir. 
Or they may agree upon an evan- 
gelist who will conduct the meetings 
under their direction, freeing them for 
pastoral work and personal evangelism. 
Even when the evangelist is secured, 
the Gospel singer and leader is an 
advantage. 

2. Support 

a. Additional helpers will be nec- 
essa^^^ As in the case of the local 
church, the official boards of all the 
churches should dedicate themselv-es as 
organizations and as indi^iduals to the 
holy enterprise. 

6. From each board a select num- 
ber of competent members should be 
appointed to organize the campaign 
and execute its plans. Such appoint- 
ments should be made as to include, 
in so far as possible, the key men of 
the churches and the commimity, so 
that every ^drile organization in everj^ 



d 



APPENDIX 183 

church will be enlisted and every press- 
ing need of the neighborhood con- 
sidered. Since a community movement 
will incur expenses in excess of those 
of a single church, it is wise to make 
provision, through a finance commit- 
tee, for such expenses, whether for 
evangelists, singers, hymn books, print- 
ing, adjustment of church property, or 
what not. This should be done be- 
fore the meetings begin, so that anxiety 
from this cause will not deter the 
work. Of course other essential mat- 
ters, as music, ushering, publicity and 
printing, personal work, young people's 
work, etc., will be carefully planned 
for and performed by competent sub- 
committees. 

3. Policy 

Practically all the matters essen- 
tial for a local campaign are present 
in a community movement, but in 
an enlarged form. Because it is a 
community activity even greater care 
should be exercised, lest social or other 



184 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

enterprises interfere. A more general 
advertising scheme, which will reach 
to every home and individual in the 
community, can be planned and real- 
ized. Following is the copy of an 
actual joint pastoral letter used to 

announce what was called ^The H 

Christian Movement of 1911.^' This 
letter was mailed to every member 
of the uniting churches. Several times 
during the campaign other communica- 
tions were mailed or distributed to 
every family in the towTi. These letters 
were printed as attractively as possible. 

H , N. Y., January 10, IQU. 

Dear Fellow Christian: 

Greeting! We, the pastors of the churches, 
salute you! May yours be a prosperous New 
Year! The greeting, though tardy, is none the 
less sincere. 

And there's a reason. It is a matter for 
congratulation that there has been such a feel- 
ing of hearty good wall between the churches 

of H . It is our desire to encourage and 

increase all kindly feehng. Surely, all will be 
happy to aid to this glorious end. 



APPENDIX 185 

yes! there^s a way. A joint committee 
from our churches has arranged for a series 
of evangelistic services to begin Sunday, Jan- 
uary 29. Your pastors are to be the preachers 
of the evangel. We are to be assisted by a 
widely known and very successful gospel 
singer, Mr. J. J. Lowe, of Philadelphia, a co- 
worker with the world-famed Dr. Chapman, 
of the Evangelistic Committee of the Presby- 
terian General Assembly. The meetings are 
to continue nightly for three or four weeks. 
Other meetings will be announced. We be- 
speak for you a hearty interest in all the work 
planned. Such interest means SUCCESS. We 
know EVERYONE Can help in some way. Will 
YOU not cooperate with us in one or more of 
the following plans?— 

1. Arrange business and social matters to 
avoid any conflict with the meetings, so that 
you can be present. 

2. Attend such preliminary Neighborhood 
Meetings, soon to begin, as may be held near 
your home. 

3. Make available your talent for song, or 
as a Christian visitor, or usher, or adviser in 
the meetings, by joining the large volunteer 
choir, or some one of the committees on work 
indicated. 

4. If you are a ''shut-in^' for any reason, 



186 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

still you can help by pleading conversation 
with and unceasing prayer for the unsaved 
friends of your household and social circle. 

Yes, help a little; and let that little be as 
large as possible. 

The time for preparation is short. Please 
decide at once to be an aggressive part of this 
community-wide movement. Then, without 
delay, indicate your decision by signing and 
handing to your pastor the card inclosed, 
giving you a particular place in our great 
campaign. DO IT NOW! 

As pastors we pledge you that we shall put 
our most earnest and strenuous effort into 
this work. We are determined, by God's help 
— and yours — ^to make this movement a suc- 
cess. We refuse to be responsible for failure. 
We know we shall succeed if our people but 
devote themselves to the Lord's work. We 
must count on you. Can we? 

Hand and heart go T\dth this New Year's 
Greeting and Appeal. Taking Philippians 3. 
13, 14 as our Year Text, let us march forth, 
singing in our hearts, 

'^Onward, Christian soldiers! 

Marching as to war. 
With the cross of Jesus 
Going on before." 



J 



APPENDIX 187 

'This one thing I do!'' God help us all! 
In Christian Love and Labor. 
Yours faithfully, 

(Names of pastors.) 

For a community movement a larger 
number of neighborhood prayer meet- 
ings can be arranged and should be. 
Friday night can be set apart for 
the young people, and the Decision 
Day services can be planned for all 
the Sunday schools. More pretentious 
arrangements can be made for attrac- 
tive music, because of the enlarged 
constituency involved. All of the pas- 
tors, if wise, will be actively employed 
in all the services, and pastoral work 
will be engaged in with the greatest 
energy possible, that the last soul may 
be reached. 

In addition, such a movement makes 
possible the promotion of a successful 
men's meeting to be held on Sunday 
afternoons. It may be advisable to 
secure special speakers, one for each 
men's meeting. At any rate, every 



188 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

plan should be so perfect as to assure 
a powerful and successful service. If 
there be factories near, it may be 
well to arrange noonday meetings. 
They will be brief necessarily, but if 
tactfully conducted they will advertise 
favorably, and consequently increase 
the attendan ce at the evening services. 
It will be well to provide some 
sort of device so that the church 
preferences of converts may be de- 
clared at the time of commitment. 
This may save embarrassment and 
friction. A card with a pledge de- 
cision to be signed with name, address, 
date, and church preference is a simple 
and effective provision. A signature 
should be significant. It is so con- 
sidered in any legal document, and 
elsewhere. Why not in a matter of 
religious decision? Only be sure that 
the signature has been written in good 
faith, after serious conviction and ear- 
nest consecration to Jesus Christ as 
Saviour and Lord. 



APPENDIX 189 

When a community movement is 
planned it is a matter of great con- 
cern that the best meeting place be 
selected. One of the church buildings 
should be decided upon. Which one, 
good judgment and Christian prudence 
will determine. Usually the evening 
services of the campaign should be 
conducted in the same place through- 
out. To change is confusing. 

Such a movement as this in an 
ordinary community partakes of a 
social and educational, as well as a 
religious character, harmonizing and 
unifying the powers of righteousness. 
It is well worth while. 



The aim has been to present plans 
which are suggestive rather than ex- 
haustive. Situations differ. Some 
means which may be used with em- 
inent success in one place may fail 
utterly in another. Principles are 
essential. Plans and methods are va- 
riable. A precise knowledge of condi- 



190 PRACTICAL EVANGELISM 

tions will enable pastors and helpers 
to plan to meet their own situation 
specifically. The great need is that 
aggressive evangelism become the 
miiversal practice of our Christian 
churches — the rule, not the exception. 
Our Father is more willing to give 
than his children are to receive. Given 
the burden for souls, then plans will 
be formed and work ^Tought, seed sown 
and harvest reaped. 

There are extraordinary religious 
movements such as are conducted by 
Dr. Chapman and Mr. Alexander, the 
Rev. WilHam A. Sunday and others. 
We believe that the fundamental prin- 
ciples upon which they operate are 
presented, both as to spirit and prac- 
tice, in the preceding pages. We need 
not present their very elaborate organ- 
ization plans, for when a general move- 
ment in a population center is con- 
templated, such honored and highly 
favored evangelists are invited, and 
they bring their own plans with them. 



APPENDIX 191 

In conclusion, we pray, first, that 
the zeal for God's house may so con- 
sume pastors and people that, second, 
more and more it will be a fact that 
the churches will give themselves to 
the proclamation of the evangel in 
usual and in special services. 



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